Cyber Monday Shopping Activity Eclipses Last Year for eBay Companies

Virtual cash registers were ringing across the Web this Cyber Monday following shopping momentum from Black Friday. According to Nielsen//NetRatings, eBay (Nasdaq:EBAY) was the most visited eCommerce site on Black Friday, with 5.4 million unique visitors. In addition, data from PayPal showed a 33 percent increase from 2006 in online payment volume the day after Thanksgiving. From secure transactions to increased traffic, hot products to hard-to-find gifts, eBay Inc. companies, including Shopping.com and PayPal, reported encouraging Cyber Monday shopping trends on the heels of a busy weekend.

“Cyber Monday traditionally marks the ramp-up of the online holiday shopping season and with the data that’s rolling in, eTailers should see green this holiday,” said Jim Griffith, eBay Inc. dean of education. “As Internet shopping grows increasingly convenient and consumers become more comfortable buying on the Web, more and more shoppers are avoiding the long lines and going online to check everything off their holiday lists.”

Cyber Monday Busier Than Ever

From Cyber Monday 2005 to 2006, PayPal reported a 34 percent increase in total payment volume (TPV) online, an indicator that each year more shoppers flock to the Web the Monday after Thanksgiving.

Shopping.com’s traffic to its merchants on Cyber Monday 2007 increased 28 percent compared to last year as more shoppers sought out the comparison shopping site to find some of the best online deals. Traffic to merchants for the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, Black Friday through Cyber Monday, was also up 30 percent year-over-year.

“Cyber Monday continues to be a big day for online shopping,” said Susan Phillips, vice president of marketing for PayPal. “Regardless of when and what shoppers are buying online this holiday season, it’s important to do it safely. With PayPal, the customer’s financial information is never shared with the merchant, making it a safer and easier way to pay online.”

Busiest Day Expected on Green Monday

Although eBay, Shopping.com and PayPal saw strong activity on Cyber Monday, the companies expect to see the busiest online shopping day come later in the season.

Based on TPV data from the past five years, PayPal concludes that the holiday shopping season is becoming longer as consumers are shopping online well into December. Procrastinating gift-givers seem to abound, with 40 percent stating they’ll do the bulk of their online holiday shopping in December, according to a recent Shopping.com consumer survey. In addition, PayPal data shows that holiday shopping activity each season is the busiest on the second Monday in December, rather than Cyber Monday, as it was in the early days of the Internet.

“We’re pleased with the early spike in online shopping, but are looking forward to the second Monday in December, or what we’ve begun to call ‘Green Monday,’ when we expect online shopping to really peak this season,” said CEO of Shopping.com Josh Silverman. “Green Monday outpaced Cyber Monday in the past few years in terms of revenue and consumer traffic on our site. More shoppers are comfortable doing the bulk of their online shopping later in the season, and after surveying our merchants, we found that a whopping 72 percent are offering next day shipping this year as a response to demand to shop later.”

Hot Products Are in Demand

Below are some of this season’s most popular gifts based on what people were shopping for on eBay and Shopping.com.

Toys

Squawkers McCaw FurReal Friends Parrot – $25 – $70, eBay

Easy Link Internet Launch Pad – $32 – $63, eBay

Hasbro Transformers Movie Optimus Prime Action Figure – $39 – $85, Shopping.com

Based on searches and clicks, the Transformers Optimus Prime toy is the most popular action figure on Shopping.com.

Media

Tim Burton’s Nightmare Before Christmas DVD – $12 – $56, eBay

High School Musical 2 CD Soundtrack – $16 – $30, Shopping.com

Hannah Montana 2/Meet Miley Cyrus Original CD Soundtrack – $12 – $16, Shopping.com

Seventy-three copies of the Nightmare Before Christmas DVD sold on eBay during Cyber Monday for an average selling price of $30.55.

Health and Beauty

Very Sexy for Him by Victoria’s Secret 3.4 oz. Cologne Spray – $36 – $50, Shopping.com

Chi Ceramic Hair Straightening Irons – $85 – $200, Shopping.com

MAC Cosmetics 1.5g Eyeshadow – $3 – $20, eBay

The Victoria’s Secret Very Sexy for Him, is the most popular men’s fragrance on Shopping.com based on searches and clicks and is available from 11 stores.

Consumer Electronics

Apple iPhone — average selling price of $416.91, eBay

Guitar Hero III Legends of Rock video game for Xbox – 360 – $75, eBay

Apple iPod Touch 8 GB – $285 – $350, Shopping.com

The Apple iPhone remains the most in-demand item on eBay. iPhones are the top-searched keyword across the site followed by iPod. Over 2,000 iPhones sold on eBay over the 2007 Thanksgiving weekend (Friday through Sunday).

About eBay Inc.

Founded in 1995, eBay Inc. connects hundreds of millions of people around the world every day, empowering them to explore new opportunities and innovate together. eBay Inc. does this by providing the Internet platforms of choice for global commerce, payments and communications. Since its inception, eBay Inc. has expanded to include some of the strongest brands in the world, including eBay, PayPal, Skype, Shopping.com, and others. eBay Inc. is headquartered in San Jose, California.

About PayPal

PayPal is the safer, easier way to pay and get paid online. The service allows anyone to pay in any way they prefer, including through credit cards, bank accounts or account balances, without sharing financial information. With more than 164 million accounts in 190 markets and 17 currencies around the world, PayPal enables global ecommerce. PayPal is an eBay company. More information about the company can be found at https://www.paypal.com

About Shopping.com

Shopping.com, an eBay company, pioneered online comparison shopping and today is one of the fastest growing shopping destinations on the Internet with items from thousands of trusted stores from across the Web. With a singular focus on shopping, Shopping.com offers shoppers easy-to-use search tools, engaging content, time-saving navigation, along with millions of product and merchant reviews from the Epinions community, all in one place. The Shopping.com Network powers the shopping experience for hundreds of websites. For more information, please visit www.shopping.com.