• by January 4, 2005

The tally is in on online holiday shopping. Shoppers spent a whopping $23.2 billion online from November 1 to December 26, up 25 percent from the same period a year ago, according to a survey conducted by Nielsen//NetRatings, Goldman Sachs, and Harris Interactive.

The 2004 eSpending report suggests that consumers are increasingly comfortable with online shopping and find it very convenient. For example, the report found that 36 percent of respondents used online shopping as a way to avoid holiday crowds at retail; the same percentage said they found a lower price online than at retail; and 33 percent said they found a broad selection of products online.

The report, based on weekly surveys of more than 1,000 respondents, found that online consumers spent the most on clothing and apparel ($3.8 billion), for a total online shopping revenue of 16 percent during the 2004 holiday season. Toys and video games came in second with $2.5 billion, or 11 percent of online revenue, while consumer electronics came in third with $2.3 billion, or 10 percent of total online revenue.

Jewelry, flowers, and computers registered the highest year-over-year growth online. Notably, jewelry sales online increased 113 percent to $1.9 billion during the 2004 holiday season compared to the $888 million spent in 2003. Online florists saw a 59 percent increase in online revenue to $530 million, while PC marketers enjoyed a 30 percent rise, generating $2.1 billion in online revenue.

Completely unrelated to online holiday shopping, readers of the Minute and MediaDailyNews may have noticed that the online version of MEDIA Magazine changed its name. Those of you who received the January 2005 issue may notice that the publication is called OMMA, or Online Media, Marketing, and Advertising. It's true, we have changed the name. As MediaPost Publisher Ken Fadner writes in a letter to readers in the January issue, we decided to broaden the mission of the online magazine to address all facets of online marketing - agencies, publishers, and marketing leaders at brands of all sizes.

So when you see OMMA, you now know that it is the new name of the online edition of MEDIA, and not a yoga asana or mantra for meditation. Now you may try to use OMMA for spiritual purposes, but we cannot promise that it will deliver the goods, or you. What we aim to do is offer some form of intellectual stimulation, or at the very least, a source of conversation.