Mobile internet retail sales to carve out e-commerce niche

This equates to £122.9m out of total online retail spending of £21.2bn last year, claim analysts Verdict and Ovum, who have released a joint study.

They claim that only 2.1% of the UK adult population shopped using internet access on their mobile. This is less than a tenth of the 28% of the population who have mobile internet access.

However, they expect internet sales via mobiles to reach £275m by 2013.

In addition they suggest mobile will increase in importance for consumers researching products and prices and interacting with retailers.

Malcolm Pinkerton, senior analyst at Verdict Research, said: "Consumers are not spending significant amounts via mobiles and, for now, we believe the true potential for m-commerce is to provide consumers with a valuable tool for research, comparison shopping and retailer interaction."

There have been a number of recent moves by retailers to improve their mobile shopfronts and services. Among them Marks & Spencer has launched a mobile version of its website, Ocado has added an Android shopping app to its iPhone app, and Argos is currently topping Brand Republic's app chart with its product pricing and availability search iPhone app. 

This article was first published on marketingmagazine.co.uk