Mobile shopping is getting trendier with the day. According to ABI Research, purchases attributed to mobile online shopping, excluding travel, grew from $396.3 million in 2008 to $1.4 billion in 2009! This year, that figure will surpass $3.4 billion while travel-related purchases (airline tickets, hotels, etc.) will add another $1.5 billion to the pile.
The research company’s senior analyst Mark Beccue thinks (and we agree) that we have smartphones to thank for the significant rise of mobile online shopping.
US mobile customers are most likely to buy travel-related products and services (31%), computers and electronics (20%), apparel (13%), books/music/DVDs (9%), office supplies (7%), housewares/home furnishings (6%) and entertainment tickets (3%). All other products and services account for 12% of the mobile shopping spending.
The rest of the world will also join the party. In the ever hi-tech Japan, mobile is already responsible for nearly 17% of all e-commerce sales. Globally, ABI Research believes mobile online shopping will account for $163 billion in sales, or 12% of the total e-commerce turnover…