Black Friday retail sales online this year
topped US$ 1 billion for the first time ever as more consumers chose to use the Internet for their early holiday shopping, comScore reported on Sunday.
Online sales jumped 26 % on Black Friday to US$ 1.04 billion from sales of US$ 816 million on the same day last year, according to the data analyst company.
Amazon.com was the most-visited retail website on Black Friday, and it also posted the highest year-over-year visitor growth rate among the top five retailers. Wal-Mart's website was second, followed by Best Buy, Target and Apple.
Digital content and subscriptions, including e-books, digital music and video, was the fastest-growing retail category online, with sales up 29 % versus Black Friday last year.
| 2012 Holiday Season To Date vs. Corresponding Days* in 2011 Non-Travel (Retail) Spending Excludes Auctions and Large Corporate Purchases Total U.S. – Home & Work Locations | Millions ($) | Millions ($) | Percent Change |
| 2011 | 2012 | ||
| November (1 – 23) | $11,832 | $13,726 | 16% |
| Thanksgiving Day (Nov. 22) | $479 | $633 | 32% |
| Black Friday (Nov. 23) | $816 | $1,042 | 26% |
Cyber Monday Outlook
It's unclear whether the strong Black Friday sales online will weaken
growth on Cyber Monday, which has been the biggest e-commerce day in the
United States in recent years.
"Cyber Monday will be a big day, but not as much of a big day as it has been in the past," - Mia Shernoff, executive vice president for Chase Paymentech, a payment-processing unit of J.P. Morgan Chase
"Faster broadband Internet connections in the office used to drive this. But now many consumers have faster connections at home and smart phones and tablets - they don't have to wait." - ComScore Chairman Gian Fulgoni
More
than 129 million Americans plan to shop online on Cyber Monday, up from
almost 123 million on the same day last year, according to a survey
conducted in recent days for the National Retail Federation. The group
also expects 85 % of retailers to have a special promotion for
Cyber Monday.
