comScore Reports $47.5 Billion in Q3 2013 Desktop-Based U.S. Retail E-Commerce Spending, Up 13 Percent vs. Year Ago

RESTON, Va., Nov. 8, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- comScore, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCOR), a leader in measuring the digital world, today released its estimates of Q3 2013 U.S. desktop-based retail e-commerce sales. Q3 2013 sales grew 13 percent year-over-year to $47.5 billion, marking the sixteenth consecutive quarter of positive year-over-year growth and twelfth consecutive quarter of double-digit growth. M-commerce spending on smartphones and tablets added $5.8 billion for the quarter, up 26 percent vs. year ago, for a total digital commerce spending total of $53.2 billion in the third quarter.

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"Third quarter e-commerce spending grew 13 percent from a year ago, and although that marks a pretty healthy growth rate, it also represents a slight deceleration from the prior quarter," said comScore chairman Gian Fulgoni. "Other macroeconomic indicators also suggested relative softness in discretionary spending, which offers some cause for concern as we head into the holiday season. Although there was evidence of slightly diminished consumer confidence in Q3, a more optimistic take is that increased outlays on large purchases such as new homes and automobiles may have temporarily squeezed other discretionary consumer spending. That said, the trend could still spell a challenging holiday season for retailers this year – particularly given the highly compressed calendar between Thanksgiving and Christmas, which contains six fewer shopping days than last year and is the shortest shopping season since 2002. Nonetheless, we are confident that the growth rate in online spending will once again far exceed that in bricks and mortar stores, reflecting the ongoing channel shift to e-commerce."

Other highlights from Q3 2013 include:

• The top-performing online product categories were: Digital Content & Subscriptions, Apparel & Accessories, Consumer Packaged Goods, Consumer Electronics and Jewelry & Watches. Each category grew at least 14 percent vs. year ago.
• E-commerce accounted for 9.4 percent of consumers' discretionary spending, the highest third quarter share on record.
• Of the additional $5.8 billion in mobile commerce (m-commerce), purchasing using smartphones accounted for 62 percent vs. 38 percent from tablets.

Webinar Series: State of the U.S. Online Retail Economy through Q3 2013
Join Gian Fulgoni and Andrew Lipsman, VP of Marketing & Insights, as they present an update of the state of the U.S. online retail economy through Q3 2013 in a live webinar on Wednesday, November 13 from 2-3 p.m. EST / 1-2 p.m. CST / 11-12 p.m. PST. Featured content includes content sections covering mobile/multi-platform commerce trends and the 2013 holiday e-commerce season preview.

To register for the webinar, please visit: http://www.comscore.com/SORQ32013

About comScore
comScore, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCOR) is a global leader in digital measurement and analytics, delivering insights on web, mobile and TV consumer behavior that enable clients to maximize the value of their digital investments. For more information, please visit www.comscore.com/companyinfo.

SOURCE comScore, Inc.