The Goldman, Sachs & Co., Nielsen//NetRatings and Harris Interactive fifth annual Holiday eSpending Report revealed that online holiday shopping totaled $30.1 billion, excluding travel, during the 2005 holiday season – October 29 – December 23. This season's online spending in the United States resulted in a 30% increase from the 2004 holiday season.

“Consumers continue to shop later in the online holiday season as their trust in on-time delivery grows. While 2005 holiday sales appear to be at the high end of expectations, continued heightened competition could hurt profitability,” said Anthony Noto, Internet and entertainment analyst, Goldman Sachs.

According to the final Holiday eSpending Report for 2005, online shoppers spent the most holiday dollars on apparel/clothing during the 2005 holiday season, totaling $5.3 billion; the category enjoyed 42 percent growth from last year's online revenue (see Table 1). Computer hardware/peripherals ranked second in category spending with a total of $4.8 billion, showing a 126 percent year-over-year growth in online revenue, the strongest growth this season.

Consumer electronics, the second fastest growing category, garnered $4.8 billion in online spending, jumping 109 percent year-over-year. Books and toys/video games rounded out the top five product categories, garnering $3.0 and $2.3 billion in online revenue, respectively. The Books category jumped 66 percent in revenue from last year, compared to toys/video games, which fell nine percent from the 2004 holiday season.

“Apparel remains one of the more dominant product categories during the holiday season, mirroring offline holiday retail behavior,” said Heather Dougherty, senior retail analyst, 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.”

Dougherty continued, “Toys and video games were not as fortunate this year, with a lack of the must-have toy to drive sales. Moreover, the line between product categories are blurring with the introduction of more hybrid devices that can be considered consumer electronics or computer hardware.”

  Product Category**             2005 Projected Online   2005 vs. 2004 YOY
                                 Holiday Revenue in          Growth
                                     Millions
  Apparel/Clothing                   $5,349                   42%
  Computer hardware/peripherals      $4,821                  126%
  Consumer electronics               $4,793                  109%
  Books                              $2,953                   66%
  Toys/Video games (hardware
   & software)                       $2,296                   -9%