uBid sees spike in holiday traffic

E-commerce and auction site uBid reported that more people visited its site during the weekend after Thanksgiving this year than did last year. The CMGI-owned company reported an increase in traffic of 22 percent and a 56 percent spike in bids placed by customers. Purchases also increased 15 percent during the historically busy shopping weekend from a year ago, and 68 percent more credit cards were registered.

Other e-commerce retailers reported similar success over the weekend. Amazon.com reported selling more than 12,000 items than the Friday after Thanksgiving last year, and Yahoo Shopping said transactions nearly doubled. The sales news temporarily dispelled fears that events surrounding Sept. 11 would severely dampen consumer spending over the holidays, a crucial time for the retail industry. --Sam Ames, Special to ZDNet News