• by November 17, 2004

Here are a few findings and some interesting data, courtesy of Claria Corp.'s Feedback Research unit:

• Claria finds that 66 percent of Web users prefer to purchase holiday gifts online, up 12 percent from last season. Of those who shop online for holiday gifts, 70 percent of survey respondents do so because of convenience, while 61 percent shop online to avoid crowds.

• The number of respondents researching product and pricing information online before buying online (56 percent), grew 8 percent over last year.

• Eighty percent of respondents said they will research holiday gifts online before buying either in stores or online.

• Fifty-two percent of Web users will begin shopping more than 30 days before Christmas.

• Amazon.com captures the most viewers and 10 percent of total traffic for major retailing sites; eBay followed with 9.7 percent and iVillage with 7 percent.

• Ninety-one percent of respondents said they will buy holiday gifts this season and when asked how much they plan to spend online, 66 percent said that they would spend $100 or more this season.

Claria analyzed the online behavior of millions of Web users, monitoring traffic from September 1 to November 1 among consumers who viewed retailing sites in the apparel, books, toys, flowers, gifts, jewelry, cosmetics, and fitness and nutrition categories.