OnlineTravelSpendingSurpasses$1BillioninJanuaryTheonlinetravelindustryhit$1.2billioninsalesinJanuary2001,accountingfornearlyone-thirdofof$3.8billionine-commercetransactions,accordingtoresearchbyNielsen//NetRatingsandHarrisInteractive.Thismarksadollarincreaseof29percentfromsixmonthsagowhenconsumersspent$943millionononlinetravelinAugust2000,settingthehighestlevelsincemonthlysurveysbeganlastApril.FromJanuary2000toJanuary2001,Nielsen//NetRatingsfoundthatonlineshoppingtripstothetopfivetravelsitesfromworkandhomejumped42percentto22millionvisits."Onlinetravelspendinggrew17percenttomorethan$1.2billioninJanuary,whileallotherformsofconsumere-commercedeclinedfromtheirhecticholidaylevelsinDecember,"saidSeanKaldor,vicepresidentofe-commerceatNetRatings.TheNielsen//NetRatingsandHarrisInteractiveeCommercePulse,whichcollectsdataanonlinesurveyof50,000Webusers,foundthatTravelocityheldthelargestshareofonlinetravelbuyers(18percent).SouthwestAirlinesfollowedwith14percentofallonlinetravelpurchasers.Expedia'ssharewas11percent.Priceline(9percent)andDelta(8percent)roundedoutthetopfiverankings.Inadditiontotheironlinesuccess,Internettravelsitesstimulatedanother$681millioninofflinerevenueinJanuary.Thesesalesweregeneratedbyonlineoperations,butpurchasedthroughthephone,faxorin-person."Onlinetravelisoneofthemoreefficientverticalindustriesonline,routinelycompleting64percentoftransactionsontheWebwhilemanyotherproductcategoriesseeonly30to40percentofrevenuesactuallytransactedthroughthecost-efficientonlineinterface,"saidKaldor."OnlinetravelsitesshouldnotbeevaluatedpurelybytheirWebdollarsalesfigurealone.ManypeopleusetheInternettopricecomparisonshop,andpreferpurchasingtheirticketsbyspeakingdirectlywithatravelagent."MostPopularOnlineTravelProvidersRankCompanyUniqueTravelAudience(000)PurchaserShare1.Travelocity8,72018%2.Southwest4,10914%3.Expedia4,80111%4.Priceline3,4099%5.Delta3,0198%Source:Nielsen//NetRatingsandHarrisInteractive
