VeriSign Reports $8.8 Billion in Online Purchases=20 During the 2004 Holiday Shopping Season December 31, 2004 12:00am Source: PR Newswire Online Sales Experienced a Healthy Growth of 24 Percent as Compared to 2003 MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., Dec. 30=20 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- VeriSign, Inc. (Nasdaq:=20 VRSN), the leading provider of intelligent=20 infrastructure services for the Internet and=20 telecommunications networks, today released new=20 e-commerce data showing that the 2004 holiday=20 shopping season (Thanksgiving through Monday,=20 December 27) yielded a total of $8.8 billion in=20 online shopping purchases, a 24 percent increase=20 as compared to the same period last year.=20 VeriSign also reported that the average price of=20 an online purchase reached a season-high of $178=20 on Wednesday, December 22, 2004, one of the final=20 shipping days before Christmas. Additionally, the=20 final five shopping days during the week of=20 December 20 accounted for $1.5 billion in online=20 purchases. "The 2004 online holiday shopping season has=20 proved highly successful, with virtually every=20 indicator showing growth. From spikes in merchant=20 categories to new shopping phenomena like 'Black=20 Monday,' we continue to observe the impact the=20 online marketplace has on traditional=20 shopping-behavior patterns," said Trevor Healy,=20 vice president of payment services, VeriSign.=20 "Through the online data we collected, we have=20 seen clear changes in consumer behavior such as=20 accelerated weekday shopping activity, more=20 confidence in buying digital goods from=20 e-commerce sites, an increase in gift-certificate=20 purchases as well as the direct impact of=20 shipping lead times on sales." VeriSign's latest statistics are based on the=20 analysis of online sales volume processed through=20 VeriSign Payment Services, which comprises more=20 than 35 percent of all North American e-commerce=20 and represents in excess of 120,000 online=20 retailers. << Copyright =A92004 PR Newswire >> ---------------------------------------------------------------------- You can UNSUBSCRIBE from the OpenDTV list in two ways: - Using the UNSUBSCRIBE command in your user configuration settings at FreeLists.org - By sending a message to: opendtv-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with the word unsubscribe in the subject line.