Mobile Phone Buyers Prefer Touchscreen Interface
February 11, 2010
While text messaging continues to be the top motivating feature for mobile phone buyers, American consumers are increasingly purchasing handsets with touch screens or QWERTY keyboards, according to the latest report from The NPD Group.
The report found all 10 of the top-selling mobile phones purchased in the fourth quarter of 2009 came with a touch screen, a QWERTY keyboard, or both.
"Regargless of whether they opt for a data plan, consumers want richer user interface options," said Ross Rubin, executive director of industry analysis at NPD.
"The humble keypad is losing the race to optimize a handset's surface."
Based on U.S. consumer purchases of mobile phones in Q4, the top 10 handsets were:
1. RIM BlackBerry Curve (all 83XX models)
2. LG enV3
3. Apple iPhone 3GS (both models)
4. Apple iPhone 3G
5. Motorola Droid
6. LG enV Touch
7. RIM Blackberry Tour
8. Samsung Intensity
9. Samsung Solstice
10. Samsung Impression
In Q4 2009 Apple, LG and RIM all declined in unit share, and Motorola's Droid, even with its mid-quarter launch, was the fifth most purchased mobile phone in the U.S.
NPD also found that 46 percent of phones sold in Q4 had QWERTY keyboards (compared to 31 % in 2008) and 34 percent had touch screens (compared to 20% the prior year.)
Online Retail Spending Reaches $39 Billion In Q4
February 10, 2010
Online retail spending in the U.S. in the fourth quarter reached $39 billion, a 3 percent increase compared to a year ago, according to the latest report from comScore.
Total retail ecommerce spending reached $129.8 billion in 2009, slightly lower than the previous year's total of $130.1 billion.
"The fourth quarter, with a 3 percent year-over-year growth, helped end what has been a disappointing year for online consumer spending on a more positive note," said comScore chairman Gian Fulgoni.
"As we head into 2010, there is reason for guarded optimism for online retail spending to continue to gain share of consumers' wallets. At the same time, I expect absolute growth to be stymied by continued high unemployment and the deleveraging that is occurring in the economy as consumers exercise their new found propensity to save."
The largest online retailers, led by Amazon and Walmart, gained market share of ecommerce sales compared to small and medium-sized retailers.
Spending growth was driven by an increase in online buyers, while average spending per buyer saw modest declines.
Other highlights from the report include:
- Free shipping factored into more than 40 percent of e-commerce transactions during the holiday season.
- Tuesday, December 15 ranked as the heaviest U.S. online spending day in history at $913 million.
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Newspaper Sites Attracted 37% Of All Internet Users
February 4, 2010
Newspaper websites attracted an average monthly unique audience of 72 million visitors in the fourth quarter of 2009, representing 37 percent Internet users.
The figures come from a custom analysis by Nielsen Online for the Newspaper Association of America. Newspaper websites users generated more than 3.2 billion page views during the quarter, spending more than 2.4 billion minutes sites.
"These strong and consistent audience figures come as newspaper publishers continue to transition their companies into multiplatform content providers to meet the needs of today's audience," said NAA President and CEO John F. Sturm.
"As the economy begins to stabilize, newspaper companies are in position to leverage their trusted brands to reach a highly engaged audience and deliver maximum value to advertisers."
Time spent per person during the fourth quarter varied. In October users spent an average of 34 minutes and 14 seconds on newspaper websites. In November it was 32 minutes and 44 seconds. In December it was up slightly to 34 minutes and 52 seconds.
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Newspaper Sites Attracted 37% Of All Internet Users
February 4, 2010
Newspaper websites attracted an average monthly unique audience of 72 million visitors in the fourth quarter of 2009, representing 37 percent Internet users.
The figures come from a custom analysis by Nielsen Online for the Newspaper Association of America. Newspaper websites users generated more than 3.2 billion page views during the quarter, spending more than 2.4 billion minutes sites.
"These strong and consistent audience figures come as newspaper publishers continue to transition their companies into multiplatform content providers to meet the needs of today's audience," said NAA President and CEO John F. Sturm.
"As the economy begins to stabilize, newspaper companies are in position to leverage their trusted brands to reach a highly engaged audience and deliver maximum value to advertisers."
Time spent per person during the fourth quarter varied. In October users spent an average of 34 minutes and 14 seconds on newspaper websites. In November it was 32 minutes and 44 seconds. In December it was up slightly to 34 minutes and 52 seconds.
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