'Net Features : mobile commerce

PayPal Paves the Future of Mobile Commerce

Allison Howen — Thu, 14 Jun 2012 22:00:00 GMT

A new study by ShopVisible reveals that alternative payments are paving the way of mobile commerce.

The study tracked 23,000 Web and mobile transactions. The results revealed that in thousands of mobile transactions, 67 percent of customers used PayPal or an alternative payment method, while only 33 percent chose to pay by credit card. Conversely, the results were reversed in web-only transactions – with 62 percent of shoppers choosing to pay by credit card, 12.9 percent paying with Amazon Payments, 8.1 percent with Google Checkout and only 16.8 percent paying via PayPal.

According to the results of this study, alternative payments are a very important factor within mobile commerce, which is projected to reach $31 billion by 2016 according to Forrester Research.

“These results decipher some of the code to unlocking the potential of mobile commerce,” says Sean Cook, CEO of ShopVisible. “Mobile is a different animal, as this research shows. Lacking a simple alternative payment method could crush any retailer implementing a mobile commerce strategy. Even if alternative payment methods don’t constitute a large percentage of your existing web business, you should reconsider the relative importance when it comes to your mobile strategy.”

Optimize for Tablet Commerce with Mobify

Linc Wonham — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 22:00:00 GMT

As the mobile market diversifies and expands, unified access across all popular devices will be of increasing importance for e-commerce and multi-channel sellers’ mobile commerce strategies.

Mobify is a Web platform that powers over 20,000 mobile websites, and the company has just launched an integrated optimization product designed to leverage existing sites from any device. These include tablets, smartphones, kiosks, TVs and all other Web-connected devices.

Mobify's tablet product enables brands to take advantage of the rapidly growing tablet economy by delivering high-performing sites for their tablet visitors. Tablet ownership nearly doubled this past holiday season, reaching 19 percent of U.S. adults.

Optimizing for tablets allows online merchants to provide users with faster load times, customized text and page sizes, and a swipe-friendly interface that takes full advantage of touch-based navigation with tactile image carousels and other widgets. This will likely translate into lower bounce rates, increased conversions and more community participation across the growing number of tablet users.

The JavaScript-based Mobify platform powers some of the largest sites on the mobile Web, serving millions of pages a day and reaching 20 percent of global smartphone subscribers. Customers include Starbucks, Ideeli, Threadless, LuluLemon, Wired, Men's Health, Teen Vogue and more.

Holiday Enthusiasm for Mobile Has Doubled

Linc Wonham — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 17:30:00 GMT

Twice as many consumers are planning to use their mobile devices to make purchases this holiday season than last year, according to a joint national survey conducted by Sybase 365, a global leader in mobile messaging and mobile commerce services, and the Mobile Marketing Association (MMA).

The survey of 1,000 consumers found that more than half (62 percent) would be willing to make a purchase with their mobile device this holiday season if prompted by coupons, discount offers, text alerts, gift cards or loyalty points. In a similar survey conducted by Sybase 365 a year ago, only 32 percent of respondents said that mobile incentives would encourage them to make a purchase on their device.

In the absence of coupons, discount offers or other enticements, 56 percent of consumers surveyed said they would still be likely to use their mobile device for one of the following uses: to find a store location (38 percent), compare prices (34 percent), researching deals and coupons (28 percent), find a product review (27 percent) or make a purchase (22 percent).

Among the key areas where greater adoption inroads stand to be made is the availability of mobile commerce solutions from widely known, trusted channels. Asked which solution would encourage greater use of mobile payments for holiday shopping, one in four respondents (25 percent) reported that they would be more likely to make mobile payments if the solution was offered by their financial institution, while 22 percent would be persuaded by a solution such as PayPal, and 18 percent would be influenced by a solution from a credit card company.

Merchants are definitely stepping up their efforts to leverage the mobile channel, with 53 percent of respondents indicating they are aware of existing mobile campaigns from Target, Starbucks, Best Buy, Amazon.com, Apple or Groupon.

2011 M-Commerce Audit from Acquity

Michael Garrity — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 18:30:00 GMT

Digital marketing and multichannel e-commerce company Acquity Group has unveiled its summary of the 2011 Mobile Commerce Audit of top online retailers "to identify companies and industries on the leading edge of mobile initiatives" in the United States and European Union.

The annual audit, which has been conducted since 2009, aims to analyze the mobile campaigns of the Web's top e-commerce retailers. Acquity Group started by looking at some top online retailers and then determined a final pool based on specific considerations, such as when multiple brands exist under one company or when a company will feature both retail and non-retail sites (of which only the retail sites were looked at). They ended up auditing 535 sites.

During the study, six different mobile operating systems that reflected the 2011 landscape were looked at: Apple iOS, Android, webOS, Blackberry OS v.5, Blackberry OS v.6 and Windows Phone 7. A retailer's mobile site was tested on each OS.

Companies were judged by points that reflected their "successful adoption of an m-commerce site." For instance, a retailer received one point if they had a mobile-specific site or two points if a mobile site is optimized for a particular device.

Acquity Group compared the data found in the study with the numbers from 2010. Currently, 37 percent of sites are compatible with mobile browers, which is up from just 12 percent last year. Also, 26 percent have downloadable apps, while only 7 percent did in 2010. About 18 percent of the companies studied have both a mobile site and a downloadable app.

In all, approximately 26 percent of the retailers looked at had sites that rendered "properly" on all six operating systems, and about 21 percent of the sites followed the m. subdomain standard.

Interestingly, though 11 percent of sites were optimized for the iPhone in 2010, only 9 percent are now.

In the end, Acquity Group conluded that "2011 was the year that mobile truly took hold - and took off" because of massive gains in the number of retailers with mobile sites and apps. The market most affected by this surge in mobile usage is the ticket industry, which saw the highest percentage changes from 2010. "Simply put, a company in this industry cannot maintain a competitive edge without offering ticket purchase & management on mobile devices."

As far as mobile apps are concerned, industry leaders iOS and Android still held a firm command, with very few companies having options for Blackberry or webOS.

The study concluded with a list of the top ten m-commerce websites, included below:

1. Amazon
2. Walgreens
3. Barnes and Noble
4. Newegg
5. Buy.com
6. Armani Exchange
7. Cabela's
8. Gilt Groupe
9. Walmart
10. The Home Depot

Device Optimization Feature from Fluid

Linc Wonham — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 20:00:00 GMT

The increasing use of smartphones and tablets is changing how consumers browse and shop, forcing online retailers to do more than just shrinking down their product images to fit an assortment of screen sizes. Fluid is one company looking to solve the issue for merchants, offering a new solution in dynamic product merchandising.

The Fluid Experience device optimization feature enables retailers to create the proper visual presentation for all "touch" devices, offering a better visual experience and easier navigation for consumers. The customizable solution fits seamlessly into e-commerce platforms and integrates with back-office systems, can be tested and implemented quickly and requires no training or IT involvement to manage.

“Our technology automatically detects the type of device being used, quickly adapts and offers the best possible presentation of rich-media product displays,” says Brian Biggs, senior director of product management at Fluid, Inc. “This will only become more important as the number of devices grows.”

Merchants need only use one version of a product image to deploy their displays across multiple platforms. Only one version of the image needs to be downloaded, and Fluid Experience does the rest. One of the first companies to use the feature was clothing and lifestyle retailer Elie Tahari.

“Mobile and desktop users are catered to from the same platform, and the new implementation is able to detect our site visitor’s device and serves up the optimal presentation,” says chairman Elie Tahari. “We couldn’t be more pleased with how our partners have helped us showcase the elaborate detail and fine workmanship that Elie Tahari is known for.”

Fluid’s customers range from mass-market retailers to luxury goods manufacturers such as Coach, Diapers.com, Nine West, Reebok, Sears, The North Face and Vans.

Report Provides Statistics on Mobile Consumers

Michael Garrity — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 17:30:00 GMT

Experian Marketing Service's consumer research service, Experian Simmons, today released the 2011 Mobile Consumer Report, which provides some revealing information about what consumer habits influence mobile shopping trends.

The report provides great insights for marketers in how to prepare for the future of mobile. Among the topics covered are how consumers use their phones to manage social connections, consume media, gather information, plan shopping trips, interact with mobile advertising and more.

Marketers looking to study these tendencies should be interested in learning that 29 percent of cell phone owners are under the impression that their phones will be the primary device for their entertainment needs in the future.

Perhaps the most telling statistic observed in the study was the fact that over 33 million Americans use their mobile devices for shopping-related activities.

The report also includes a profile of five distinct "mobile consumer segments" developed by Experian Simmons. The segments are mobirati (the "mobile generation"), social connectors, mobile professionals, pragmatic adopters, and basic planners. It looks at each segment's receptivity to both traditional and mobile advertising.

Some of the major findings in the report include:

- More than 9 out of 10 adults own a mobile phone. Moreover, 7 of 10 teenagers and 1 out of 5 children have mobile devices.

- 56 percent of all smartphone owners use the device to access the Internet.

- 36 percent of iPhone owners said that they want to make purchases in stores using their phones.

- 20 percent of all social networkers access their accounts from their mobile devices.

- 16 percent of mobile owners downloaded a mobile app last month.

"The explosion in usage of mobile technologies is an industry game-changer, and marketers need reliable insights to better understand this rapidly changing landscape," says Ken Wollenberg, general manager of Experian Simmons. "This report will help them devise plans that are timely, relevant and more effective in driving incremental sales and building brand awareness in the mobile space."

LiveChat Releases iPad App

Linc Wonham — Sun, 17 Jul 2011 01:00:00 GMT

LiveChat, the real-time software and Web analytics tool for e-commerce merchants, has launched LiveChat for iPad, giving support and sales teams the freedom to monitor and assist website visitors anytime, anywhere.

The new iPad app joins a growing family of mobile LiveChat apps designed to help online companies deliver better customer service and higher sales, including support for iPhone, Android, BlackBerry and Windows Phone 7 devices.

“We’re continually extending our mobile strategy since we believe that putting LiveChat in your pocket makes it even easier to provide a great ecommerce experience,” says LiveChat CEO Mariusz Cieply. “Our goal is to make it as seamless and affordable as possible for ecommerce teams to be available for their website visitors at all times, and freeing support personnel from the desk is the best way to accomplish this.”

The new release is a universal app that supports both iPad and iPhone devices. The application can work in the background on these devices, automatically notifying the user whenever there’s an incoming message from a website visitor. The iPad app supports the major LiveChat mobile features, letting users accomplish the following tasks:

•         Preview website traffic in real-time
•         Invite website visitors to chat and respond to customer-initiated chats
•         Chat with multiple users at the same time, including the use of canned responses
•         Monitor any ongoing chat (supervisors)
•         Review sneak-peeks of customer messages, as well as survey results and client status and details (supervisors)

The LiveChat for iPad app, along with all LiveChat mobile applications, is free for active LiveChat customers and is also available for use with the LiveChat trial. LiveChat starts at $36/month for a single agent, with additional discounts available for larger plans.

Many Retailers Are Dipping -- and Not Diving -- into Mobile

Linc Wonham — Fri, 15 Jul 2011 17:00:00 GMT

According to a new study on mobile commerce, most if not all major online retailers are testing the waters with mobile-friendly websites but only a small percentage have complemented those sites with mobile applications. Many of the sites, in fact, even lack some of the basic features that would help consumers shop or browse from their mobile devices.

For a more in-depth discussion on how to most effectively take the plunge into mobile, keep an eye out for Website Magazine’s upcoming September cover story, Five Ways to Dive into Mobile.

The survey from technology provider CrossView selected 25 top retailers such as Toys ‘R’ Us, Foot Locker, Best Buy, Urban Outfitters, Abercrombie & Fitch, PetSmart, Coach, ’s Sporting Goods, Polo and Ralph Lauren, and all 25 have implemented mobile commerce sites. Only 12 percent, however, currently offer mobile apps for the iPhone, iPad or Android.

Some of the features and functions included on the retailers’ mobile-friendly websites include mobile accessibility to customer reviews, product availability, loyalty programs and GPS technology to locate stores. All 25 mobile sites include product names, descriptions, prices, the ability to complete a purchase and a store locator, while 88 percent of them allow customers to share product information via social media and to set up an account from their mobile devices.

Eighty percent of the sites allow customers to track their orders after a purchase as well as to create a wish list. Sixty percent offer ratings and reviews, 56 percent allow customers to access their loyalty program accounts, and 52 percent of the sites integrate GPS satellite technology within the store locator.

Only 44 percent show product availability online and at store locations, 40 percent display the estimated shipping charges before adding a product to a shopping cart, and 28 percent feature buy via mobile/pickup in-store.

“A majority of the mobile-optimized websites we looked at lacked basic features to help shoppers make purchase decisions in physical retail stores,” says Jason Goldberg, vice president of strategy and customer experience at CrossView. “Mobile must be integrated as a part of the overall cross-channel shopping experience. It’s critical that merchants avoid creating mobile silos in the same way that many brick-and-mortar retailers did with their first-generation e-commerce sites.”

Again, look for Website Magazine’s upcoming September issue to learn Five Ways to Dive Into Mobile.

It's Time to Redefine "Mobile"

Mike Phillips — Fri, 27 May 2011 18:30:00 GMT

These days you can't read a story about business, e-commerce or the economy without coming across something about "mobile." And if you take every report, statistic or survey as fact you might just be convinced that desktop computing has gone the way of the Dodo.

One of those recent surveys, JiWire's Mobile Audience Insights Report, found that 79 percent of mobile users are comfortable making purchases on their mobile devices and 50 percent "...are confident spending more than $100 on a purchase from their device – nearly 20 percent are even comfortable with purchases over $500."

Turn to the person to your left and ask if he or she is comfortable spending $100 using their mobile device. Then ask the person to your right the same question. According to this survey, one of them should say "yes." Ask five people if they would spend $500 using their mobile device, and one should say "yes."

Of course, the chosen mobile device is not necessarily a phone.

According to yet more research (this time from the E-tailing Group), tablet owners do more "mobile" shopping than smartphone users. Nearly 25 percent of tablet users made at least six purchases in the past six months, compared to 15 percent of smartphone users who had done the same.

Here's some more interesting research, this time from Google's AdMob, the world's leading mobile advertising network: In April, they found that 77 percent of 1,400 tablet users surveyed said that their desktop/laptop usage decreased after they started using a tablet. But, 82 percent of respondents said they primarily use their tablet at home.

So, technically, if one were to purchase a $500 item on their tablet, on their couch, this is a "mobile" purchase (and probably a 'comfortable' one, too). Consider this: If you were to go to a car dealership and they used an iPad to help you purchase a $30,000 car – is that a $30,000 "mobile" purchase? Is my laptop on my desk not "mobile" until I take it to Starbucks?

Now the advertising side is raising even more questions. AdMob claims that the network received 2.7 billion daily ad requests in April, up from 2 billion in January. Also according to AdMob, there are more than 80,000 mobile websites and apps in their network, up from 50,000 in January.

If an ad is served on a website on a tablet or mobile phone, is that one of the 2.7 billion ad requests? With today's mobile browsers becoming more sophisticated, mobile screens growing larger and the introduction of HTML 5, is there such thing as a "mobile website" anymore? If my "normal" website loads the same, fully-functional page on a tablet, is that my "mobile" website, too?

What is mobile? It's an important question that impacts everything from analytics to ad rates, which are currently quite different from the handset to the desktop.

But maybe a better question is; what isn't mobile?

Mobile Search Queries Spike on Weekends

Mike Phillips — Wed, 18 May 2011 13:56:00 GMT

This week Google and Digitas announced a collaborative effort to better measure mobile marketing by combining "original Google and Digitas search and marketing data to forecast trends, inform investment strategies, and drive the creation of mobile optimized Web sites," according to the release.

As part of that announcement, some interesting data was released about mobile search, centered on the period surrounding Mother's Day. According to the data, 33% of Google queries for the term "flowers" came from mobile devices. In the week leading up to Mother's Day, desktop searches for "flowers" increased Monday to Friday then declined on the weekend. But mobile searches steadily increased all week and throughout the weekend. Also, "flowers" was searhced on mobile devices over 100% more than last year, suggesting mobile search is on the rise across the board, and that consumers are increasingly using mobile devices to shop.

This is yet another reminder that mobile search is on the rise, is taking place anywhere and everywhere, and is not limited to any particular day of the week. In fact, this data suggests that mobile search is highest on weekends. Knowing this, Web professionals might benefit from testing dayparting mobile advertising strategies to target weekends, and timing promotions and discounts to take advantage of weekend usage patterns.

M-commerce Set for Lift-off

Mike Phillips — Tue, 19 Apr 2011 18:16:00 GMT

A few separate stories this week point directly to mobile commerce, and show that many businesses are preparing for the next big e-commerce trend.

To start, a report by Arc Worldwide titled, "Marketing to the Mobile Shopper," finds that out of 1,800 U.S. mobile phone owners, half of them use their devices to augment their shopping both in stores and online. "Heavy" mobile shoppers use their devices vigorously, while "light" mobile shoppers only use the device for tasks such as looking up store hours and locations -- still considered a mobile shopping experience. According to the report, light shoppers will develop into heavy shoppers, so retailers need to prepare for both.

Next, Digby, a service that helps retailers design and deploy m-commerce sites and apps, announced that they raised another $8 million in funding, bringing their total to $16 million. Some of Digby's high-profile clients include Costco and The Home Depot. They also have a deal with AT&T to power its m-commerce software platform for developers.

Finally, Adobe Scene7 announced that Very.co.uk (UK's largest online and home shopping retailer) is using Adobe Scene7 to make their entire catalog viewable and interactive across mobile devices, including video capabilities (more than 1,800 of them), and functions such as tapping to change the color of a product. Very UK is the first retailer in the UK to use the system.

"We want to provide the best online experience possible for our customers by ensuring the experience on our new mobile app is as engaging as our websites," said Neal Preece, e-Commerce Director at Shop Direct.

M-commerce is in a natural evolution process, as devices become more capable and users more savvy. The "Year of the Mobile" is already in full swing (maybe even passed) and the "Year of M-commerce" is approaching. How will you prepare?

Getting the Most Out of Mobile

Linc Wonham — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 19:30:00 GMT

Many retailers consider it their next big opportunity, while for others there remains a mysterious quality – perhaps, even for some, inconvenient. But make no mistake; the evolution of mobile shopping platforms is reshaping the e-commerce landscape forever.

So, like it or not, merchants have to adjust. Whether that means developing a mobile website or an application for the multitude of today’s devices – or all of the above – the most successful e-retailers will always be the ones who willingly accept, even embrace, change.

To help foster that glass-half-full outlook, and provide some helpful tips along the way, below are some of the best opportunities awaiting your online retail business in the mobile space:

Customer Service
Speed is of the essence when it comes to customer relationship management, and the mobile platform provides opportunities that simply were not available before now. Whether it involves an SMS messaging protocol to thank customers on their way out of a store’s physical location; real-time product descriptions, inventory and pricing information, or the distribution of daily, weekly or monthly online coupon notifications – the mobile channel can significantly enhance a retailer’s dialogue with customers.

Location Technologies
They are not going away, and for good reason. Perhaps the leading catalyst behind mobile commerce, location-based services and platforms can – and will, for many – be a retailer’s best friend. Merchants should begin by ensuring that they are easily searchable by their mobile customers, and then add to their presence with features such as alerts, coupons, ratings and reviews, inventory, etc.

CSEs
Recent studies have shown that mobile shoppers use their devices most frequently to compare the prices of in-store products with other products online. Retailers that have taken the time to establish a mobile presence but neglect to take advantage of comparison shopping engines are losing customers to this process. And it’s not just enough to participate today; in the mobile age it is imperative that every bit of data remains accurate in real time.

Payments and Barcodes
Much more than a simpler way for consumers to complete transactions, the mobile payments movement and mobile barcodes provide retailers with increased opportunities to offer promotions, cross-sell and upsell. Each barcode and/or mobile payment system adopted by a merchant gives that merchant the ability to use a landing page for a specific product or category purchased through that channel, allowing for customized messaging to an entirely new group of customers.

While it may seem new and even somewhat intimidating to many of us, mobile commerce has arrived – and it is here to stay. In this ever-flexible world of e-commerce, the most content merchants a year or two from now will be the ones that accepted this latest change rather than running from it.

PayPal Processing +$6 Million Per Day - In Mobile Transactions

Mike Phillips — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 23:30:00 GMT

According to PayPal Mobile Director of Product Management, Fabio Sisinni, "We are doing more than $6 million per day in mobile transactions and we’re on track to exceed $2 billion this year.

"We will top $7.5 billion in 2013 based on the growth we’re seeing. A mobile wallet in the cloud is not so distant based on our numbers."

That's serious growth. In fact, PayPal's own figures show it to be an increase of more than 250% from 2010. And, based on the current rate of growth, PayPal estimates that number to reach $7.5 billion in 2013.

So where are all these mobile payments taking place? Merchants using Express Checkout include Starbucks, Footlocker and Overstock.com, and of course eBay is using PayPal mobile. Massive growth potential is also seen in the physical retail world. For example, visit a store after receiving a coupon on a mobile device then redeem said coupon at the store -- technically, a mobile transaction.

Another driving factor in mobile payment growth might be the sudden increase in mobile search, as detailed in this Performics study.

Retailers are Missing the Connection with Mobile Shoppers

Linc Wonham — Thu, 27 Jan 2011 05:26:00 GMT

Mobile shopping applications that provide consumers access to price comparisons, product availability, coupons, recommendations, ratings and reviews helped drive online spending to record highs during the 2010 holidays. However, according to a new study from Motorola Solutions, many brick-and-mortar retailers paid dearly for neglecting to keep pace with their increasingly tech-savvy customers.

The majority of retail associates surveyed believe that shoppers were better connected to consumer information than were in-store employees, ultimately hurting those retailers’ bottom lines. The study found that 28 percent of in-store visits ended with an average of $132 in abandoned purchases by mobile shoppers confident of locating lower prices, more plentiful stock, shorter check-out processes and better customer assistance elsewhere.

The study also indicates that 43 percent of shoppers who received in-store guidance from retail associates armed with their own mobile devices reported that the device improved their shopping experience. The survey also found that because today’s mobile shoppers can easily find deals elsewhere, 87 percent of retailers now consider in-store customer service - aided by access to real-time information – to be more important than ever.

Motorola Solutions has an obvious interest in selling the retail industry on the idea of smartphone-wielding in-store associates, but the results of the survey should not be overlooked. Mobile’s impact on the 2010 holiday season was minute compared to what we will see at the end of this year, when smartphone usage will be much closer to the mainstream. Arming employees with the proper tools to compare prices, check stock and accelerate the checkout process is an excellent strategy for brick-and-mortar retailers wanting to keep up with the times – and their customers.

Other key findings from the study include the following:

• 34 percent of surveyed retail managers cited frustration when alerted they needed to replenish stock after getting complaints, instead of knowing ahead of time.

• 55 percent of losses due to out-of-stocks could very likely be recovered with store associate interventions; specifically, when store associates have the capability to track down the item and offer a solution, most customers will complete their purchase with that retailer.

• 68 percent of surveyed retail associates would find the capability to scan barcodes to check inventory and availability of items requested by customers helpful in a small mobile device form factor that is deployed to every associate.

• 28 percent of store visits ended with an average of $132 unspent due to abandoned purchases driven by deal-habituated behavior, out-of-stocks, limited store associate assistance and long check-out processes.

• Shoppers with smartphones used their device to influence 39 percent of their walk-out incidents; 12 percent checked prices at other retailers online, 8 percent checked availability at other stores.

• Nearly 25 percent of surveyed shoppers said they would be very likely to take advantage of a sales associate using a handheld payment terminal to complete their purchase, compared to only 9 percent who would be very likely to use their own mobile phone to scan their items and process payment without assistance.

eBay's Mobile Apps Ring in Historic Holiday Sales

Administrator — Wed, 29 Dec 2010 16:18:00 GMT

Much of eBay’s attention and resources the past year have gone into its mobile commerce development, and on Wednesday the world’s largest online marketplace publicly released the fruits of those labors. In doing so, eBay also provided a helpful overview of the mobile shopping trends that took place throughout 2010.

The company reports that its overall mobile sales during the holiday season increased 166 percent from last year to $230 million, with U.S. sales from eBay’s mobile apps up 134 percent to nearly $100 million. Those numbers coincide with eBay’s mobile push for the holidays, which yielded more than 13 million downloads of its primary iPhone app and approximately 30 million downloads for its entire suite of mobile applications.

The top five categories sold in the U.S. through eBay’s mobile apps during 2010 were cars and trucks with 16.5 percent of the share; clothing and accessories (12.2 percent); auto parts (8.3 percent), sporting goods (7.8 percent) and cell phones (6.5 percent). The top categories in eBay’s five other most active mobile markets were as follows: Canada (clothing and accessories; jewelry; cars and trucks); France (clothing and accessories; jewelry; computers); Germany (auto parts; cars and trucks; clothing and accessories); Australia (cars and trucks; home improvement; clothing and accessories), and the United Kingdom (cars and trucks; clothing and accessories; auto parts).

Other trends in 2010 mobile shopping behavior included peaks in U.S. consumer electronics sales following the April release of the iPad and the June release of the iPhone 4; in U.S. videogame sales during the week ending on Valentine’s Day, as World of Warcraft and Final Fantasy hosted special online gaming events; and in sports memorabilia sales in Canada during the Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver, B.C.; in Germany during the FIFA World Cup held in South Africa, and in France during that country’s Tour de France cycling event.

Going back to the 2010 holidays, December 12 was the busiest day for U.S. mobile sales, with the iPhone being the leading platform used by shoppers and the most purchases taking place in California, Pennsylvania, Florida, Indiana and Ohio.