'Cyber Monday' shoppers spent record $1.46 bn

Online sales for "Cyber Monday," the traditional debut for US holiday Web shopping, jumped to $1.465 billion this year, a research firm said Wednesday. The report from comScore said sales were up 17 percent from the same day in 2001 and was the biggest Internet shopping day ever. For the holiday season so far, online sales were up 16 percent at $16.4 billion, comScore said, with heavy sales on "Black Friday," the day after Thanksgiving, and continuing over the holiday weekend. "Despite some news reports suggesting that Cyber Monday might be declining in importance, the day has once again set an online spending record," said comScore chairman Gian Fulgoni. "However, it is also clear that the holiday promotional period has begun even earlier this year, with strong online sales occurring on Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday. Now, we shall see the extent to which continuing and attractive retailer promotions are able to boost sales for the remainder of the week." The biggest gains came in so-called digital content and subscriptions, up 28 percent from a year ago, while consumer electronics sales jumped 24 percent, boosted by smartphones. Computer hardware, including tables, were up 22 percent while video games and consoles said an 18 percent jump. Sales of jewelry and watches rose 17 percent. A separate survey from IBM said "Cyber Monday" sales were up 30 percent, but no dollar amount was given.