Report: Online holiday spending in the U.S. up 30% from '04

Computerworld - Excluding travel, U.S. shoppers spent a total of $30.1 billion online this holiday season, according to the fifth annual eSpending Report from Goldman Sachs & Co., Nielsen/NetRatings and Harris Interactive Inc.
Online shoppers spent the most money on apparel and clothing, computer hardware and peripherals, and consumer electronics, according to the report.
"Consumers continue to shop later in the online holiday season as their trust in on-time delivery grows," said Anthony Noto, Internet and entertainment analyst at Goldman Sachs.
Online shoppers spent the most money -- $5.3 billion -- on apparel and clothing during the 2005 holiday season, 42% more than last year, according to the report. Consumers spent $4.8 billion online for computer hardware and peripherals, up 126% from 2004, and $4.6 billion on consumer electronics, up 109% from a year ago.
Books and toys/video games rounded out the top five product categories, with online shoppers spending $3 billion on books and $2.3 billion on toys/video games, according to the report. Revenue from the online sales of books jumped 66% from 2004, while revenue in the toys and video games category fell 9% from last year.
"Apparel remains one of the more dominant product categories during the holiday season, mirroring off-line holiday retail behavior," said Heather Dougherty, a senior retail analyst at Nielsen/NetRatings. "Computer hardware and consumer electronics had a stellar season with the price reductions for laptops, plasma TVs, color printers -- as well as high demand for iPods, digital cameras and media accessories. The 2005 holiday season was a gadget year for consumers of all ages, and consumers continued to show their love for free shipping. Toys and video games were not as fortunate this year, with a lack of the must-have toy to drive sales."
E-commerce gained ground with consumers during the holiday season because of its convenience, product selection and lower prices, Dougherty said. "Most importantly, holiday shoppers are diligent about finding the best price. The continued popularity of search engines such as Google and Yahoo highlights the ease of researching product selection and availability, and with a longer shopping season, it was much easier to wait for additional price reductions," she said.
In addition, more consumers took advantage of online shopping to avoid holiday crowds and purchase competitively priced gifts, she said.