Visa Survey Reveals 80 percent of Asia Pacific Internet Users Go Online to Shop

Digital entertainment content and travel top online purchases in region The internet is proving as appealing a shopping destination as the likes of shopping centres in Tsim Sha Tsui in Hong Kong or Orchard Road in Singapore. According to a Visa e-Commerce Tracking Survey, nearly 80 percent of internet users surveyed in Asia Pacific say they made an online transaction and spent an average of over US$3,000 each in the past 12 months[1]. The top three draws for shopping online were being able to shop at any time (88 percent), at the best prices (83 percent), and being able to shop easily (82 percent). According to the respondents, their most commonly made online purchases were digital entertainment (59 percent), travel (51 percent) and fashion (49 percent). Among the wide range of products and services available on the internet, Asia Pacific online shoppers surveyed reported that they spent the most on travel services with an average spending of US$812 in the last 12 months. Travel items included airline and rail tickets, hotel accommodation and travel packages. Mohamad Hafidz, regional head, e-Commerce, Asia Pacific, Visa, said: “Nearly a quarter of the world's population – roughly 1.4 billion people – used the internet on a regular basis in 2008 [2] and in Asia Pacific, on average, a person spent about 20.2 hours a month online[3]. Our own survey has revealed online consumers in Asia Pacific recognize the convenience of online shopping as reflected in the high percentage of internet users who buy a wide range of products, from that for everyday use to the occasional high-value item online.” In the region, Japanese and Koreans surveyed emerged as the most frequent shoppers, with 99 percent and 93 percent respectively having made an online purchase over the last 12 months. However, [1] In April and May 2008, Ipsos conducted 3.054 online interviews on behalf of Visa with internet users (those who access the internet at least once a week) aged 18 to 49 years from six countries and territories (Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan, Korea, Australia and India) in an effort to measure their online usage behaviors. For each marketplace, quotas were set by demographic variables to ensure the sample was representative of the general population. [2] IDC Digital Marketplace Model and Forecast, http://www.idc.com/getdoc.jsp?containerId=prUS21303808 [3] 2007 comScore World Metrix study on internet behavior covering 10 countries in the Asia-Pacific region http://www.comscore.com/press/release.asp?press=1520 Australians were the biggest online spenders with an average 12-month tab of US$4,160 – US$680 more than Singaporeans, who are the next biggest online spenders. In India, purchasing digital downloads was the most popular form of consumer e-commerce. Seventy-six percent of respondents from India, the highest among Asia Pacific, have bought a form of digital entertainment over the internet in the last 12 months. Music downloads (63 percent) emerged as the most popular digital entertainment purchase. The internet has also brought about an increase in the number of cross-border transactions with 75 percent of internet users surveyed in Hong Kong having bought an item from an overseas website in the preceding 12 months. Visa (both credit and debit cards) was their most popular payment method with nearly 60 percent of online shoppers surveyed choosing to pay with Visa. Mohamad added: “With almost four in five internet users buying online, people in Asia Pacific are taking full advantage of the global shopping experience that the internet provides.” Past 12 months online shopping spending by website category – Top 10 in Asia Pacific 1 Airlines / airline tickets 6 Computer hardware (PC) 2 Online travel agents 7 Food and groceries 3 Travel accommodation 8 Electrical appliances (TV, stereo, etc) 4 Clothes / shoes 9 White goods (refrigerator, dishwasher, etc) 5 Car / motorcycle 10 Other types of transportation for traveling Source: Visa e-Commerce Tracking Survey Average online spending in the past 12 months 1 Australia US$4,160 2 Singapore US$3,480 3 Japan US$3,175 4 South Korea US$3,027 5 India US$2,147 6 Hong Kong US$1,698 Source: Visa e-Commerce Tracking Survey About Visa: Visa operates the world’s largest retail electronic payments network providing processing services and payment product platforms. This includes consumer credit, debit, prepaid and commercial payments, which are offered under the Visa, Visa Electron, Interlink and PLUS brands. Visa enjoys unsurpassed acceptance around the world and Visa/PLUS is one of the world's largest global ATM networks, offering cash access in local currency in more than 170 countries and territories. Contact: Mark Thomson Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide (02) 205 6609 [email protected] Pattanee Jeeriphab Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide (02) 205 6607 [email protected]

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