80% Of American Web Users Plan to Buy Gifts Online This Holiday Season -- Says 2006 AOL Shopping/Zogby Poll.

Nearly a Quarter of Net Users to Spend Most of Their Budget Online

Big Apple Takes Biggest Holiday "Byte"

Ranked #1 Online Holiday Spending City

DULLES, Va. -- An overwhelming 80% of all American Internet users expect to purchase gifts online during the upcoming holiday season, according to findings from a new national AOL Shopping/Zogby poll.* In addition, nearly a quarter (24%) plan to spend most of their budget online. The poll also found that 80% of respondents expect to spend the same or more online than they did last year. In terms of online purchasing, the data reveals that Web users across the country plan to spend an average of $504.52 - almost 40% of their overall holiday budget ($1,282.13). AOL Shopping (www.shopping.aol.com) commissioned Zogby International to conduct this poll to get a snapshot of Internet users' holiday spending plans.

Examining the nation's top 20 markets reveals that New York Web surfers on average will spend the most online this holiday season with a staggering $1,483.36, constituting nearly 70% of the average NYC gift-buying budget ($2,137.26). The Big Apple's online bite is trailed in a distant second and third by wired residents of Orlando ($645.24) and Cleveland ($577.31).

According to the poll, several issues factor into why Internet users shop online during the holiday season. Nearly three in five (58%) stated online shopping saves time, while 32% say they enjoy the ease of comparison shopping. Another 29% said they found gift items online that are not available in local stores, while 24% cited the value of free shipping. Online sales promotions and easy last minute shopping also garnered support (17% each). Surprisingly, considering concerns about high gas prices, only 9% stated they shop online to save money at the pump.

"These findings clearly show that U.S. Internet users are shopping online more and more during the holiday season because of convenience, selection and price," said Robert Hayes, AOL VP/GM Marketplace. "The average consumer is starting to see the advantages of online shopping over the traditional brick and mortar store."

When asked what items they are likely to purchase online rather than in a store, 60% selected books and music, while 35% stated electronics and 31% cited toys or games. Twenty-nine percent said they are more likely to purchase clothing and accessories online rather than in a store, while 23% say they are more likely to purchase computer software online.

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Editor's Note: In addition to commissioning Zogby International to conduct a national holiday shopping poll, AOL Shopping had the firm conduct similar surveys in the top 20 markets. Detailed national and regional poll results are available upon request.

*Methodology: Zogby International conducted interviews of 37,199 adults online. Panelists who have agreed to participate in Zogby polls online were invited to participate in the survey. The online poll ran from 11/1/06 through 11/6/06. The margin of error is +/- 0.5 percentage points. Margins of error are higher in sub-groups. The top online holiday spending cities were determined by taking the mean averages of overall budgets set for holiday gift purchases (based on local-area responses ranging from 0 to $100,000.00) and cross-referencing them with anticipated percentages of online spending.

About AOL

AOL is a global Web services company that operates some of the most popular Web destinations, offers a comprehensive suite of free software and services, runs the country's largest Internet access business, and provides a full set of advertising solutions. A majority-owned subsidiary of Time Warner Inc., AOL LLC is based in Dulles, Virginia. AOL and its subsidiaries also have operations in Europe, Canada and Asia. Learn more at AOL.com.