E-Commerce sales top $117 billion in 2004, report

Online consumer spending grew by more than 26 to $117.4 billion in 2004, according to a report released today by market research firm Comscore Networks. A driver of the strong growth was once again the holiday season which was estimated to have grown from $18.3 billion in 2003 to $23.6 billion in 2004.

While overall traffic to retail sites increased by just three percent, brick-and-mortar stores were able to attract significantly more visitors in 2004, according to the report. Blockbuster for example gained 387 percent, The Home Depot 72 percent, Neiman Marcus 71 percent, Wal-Mart 68 percent and Target 57 percent. Also cellular phone and service related sites LetsTalk.com, AttWireless.com and T-Mobile.com each posted traffic gains of more than 80 percent over last year, supported by interest in new cell phones and rate plans, and increased cross-shopping since the introduction of wireless number portability at the end of 2003, Comscore said. (THG)

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