Amazon: Holiday sales reach 38 million

Amazon.com said Thursday that it sold about 38 million products worldwide during the holidays. The Seattle-based e-tailer let site visitors keep track of the number of goods sold from Nov. 9 to Dec. 21 with its so-called Delight-O-Meter. The number reflects sales from all five of Amazon's sites, including those in Britain, Japan and France.

Although Amazon did not mind revealing how many products it sold, the company declined to say how much money it brought in during the holidays. The Web superstore said it will announce its fourth-quarter earnings report Jan. 22. Amazon got a helping hand from fictional heroes Harry Potter and Shrek. Amazon said it sold 450,000 "Harry Potter" books and related products, and about 150,000 DVD and VHS copies of the film "Shrek." Amazon also said it shipped 99 percent of its orders on time for holiday deadlines. --Greg Sandoval, Special to ZDNet News