Fourth Quarter Shopping Activities Surge on U.S. Smartphones, According to NPD’s Connected Intelligence SmartMeter

PORT WASHINGTON, NEW YORK, FEBRUARY 08, 2012 –Smartphones took center stage in the consumer shopping experience during the fourth quarter of 2011, according to leading market research company The NPD Group’s Connected Intelligence SmartMeter, which tracks consumer use of smartphone applications, communications, and content services.  Shopping sites and applications saw a significant upswing as the holiday season kicked off with Black Friday in November and the momentum continued through December.   

In December alone, the proportion of U.S. Android smartphone users engaged in shopping websites rose a significant 9 percent from November to almost 80 percent of smartphone users accessing shopping related websites on their devices. This growth was nearly twice as much as any other website category tracked. While not as a widely utilized as websites, shopping apps also played an important part of the overall shopping experience, rising five percentage points in December to 59 percent reach.

Source: NPD Connected Intelligence SmartMeter

“Regardless of what many consider to be a largely app-driven world, the mobile Web is still a major access point for shopping information for consumers,” said Linda Barrabee, research director, NPD Connected Intelligence.  “Apps, however, let consumers interact directly with physical products and media in-store for reviews, availability and pricing information to better inform the consumer purchase decision. But for retailers, it’s not just about delivering compelling applications; it’s also about delivering compelling mobile consumer web experiences,” said Barrabee.

About Connected Intelligence

Connected Intelligence provides competitive intelligence and insight on the rapidly evolving consumer’s connected environment. The service focuses on the three core components of the connected market: the device, the broadband access that provides the connectivity and the content that drives consumer behavior. These three pillars of the connected ecosystem are analyzed through a comprehensive review of what is available, adopted, and consumed by the customer, as well as reviewing how the market will evolve over time and what the various vendors can do to best position themselves in this evolving market. For more information: http://www.connected-intelligence.com. Follow Connected Intelligence on Twitter: @npdci.

About NPD Connected Intelligence SmartMeter

The NPD Connected Intelligence SmartMeter is an application running on Android and BlackBerry devices leveraging an opt-in panel of consumers. The SmartMeter tracks data consumption, as well as function and content use. This includes web and application use across 23 categories including search, social networking, shopping, banking, games, navigation, health, music, and video.