Cyber Monday Posts a 17-Percent Annual Gain in Online Desktop Sales, While Weekend Buying Increased 26 Percent
Full Thanksgiving-Cyber Monday Period Achieved Strong Growth Rate of 24 Percent vs. Year Ago
comScore (NASDAQ : SCOR), a leader in measuring the digital world, today reported holiday season U.S. retail e-commerce spending from desktop computers for the first 31 days of the November-December 2014 holiday season. For the holiday season-to-date, $26.7 billion has been spent online, marking a 16-percent increase versus the corresponding days last year.
Cyber Monday reached $2.038 billion in desktop online spending, up 17 percent versus year ago, representing the heaviest online spending day in history and the only day ever to surpass $2 billion in sales. The weekend after Thanksgiving also reached a major milestone as it saw its first ever billion-dollar online shopping day on Saturday, while Sunday's sales just fell short of the $1 billion mark. The two days combined posted particularly strong growth online, raking in $2.012 billion for an increase of 26 percent compared to the same weekend last year. For the five-day period from Thanksgiving through Cyber Monday, online buying from desktop computers totaled $6.6 billion, up 24 percent versus last year.
"With more than $2 billion in online buying on Cyber Monday to cap an exceptionally strong 5-day period since Thanksgiving, the online holiday shopping season is clearly going very well at the moment and is currently running ahead of forecast," said comScore chairman emeritus Gian Fulgoni. "Any notion that Cyber Monday is declining in importance is really unfounded, as it continues to post new historical highs and reflects the ongoing strength of online this holiday season. Varying reports have also indicated weakness in the consumer economy due to flagging brick-and-mortar sales over the holiday weekend, but what we may really be seeing is an accelerating shift to online buying as mobile phones spur increased showrooming activity. The data we're seeing suggest it may be more a change in shopping behavior than a lack of consumer demand."
