Mobile commerce sales to grow to $6.7b this year in the US

eMarketer estimates mobile commerce sales will reach $6.7 billion this year in the US—a tiny fraction of overall retail sales but a 91.4 percent increase over 2010. Next year, sales will rise another 73.1 percent to $11.6 billion.

M-commerce sales are on a steep upward trajectory, thanks in part to increasing adoption of smartphones and rising mobile internet usage, according to a new forecast by eMarketer. The company forecasts that 37.5 million US consumers ages 14 and up will make at least one purchase on their mobile phone next year, up from 26.8 million this year. The vast majority of that group will be smartphone owners, at 97 percent in 2012. Overall, 72.8 million mobile users will research or browse items on their phone next year but not necessarily make a purchase.

“For years, the trend has been for consumers to research products online, then go buy in-store,” said eMarketer principal analyst Jeffrey Grau. “But as the industry improves its slate of mobile offerings, consumers are increasingly visiting stores to research products, then go buy something else on their mobile devices.”

The projected mobile sales are based on a meta-analysis of data from research firms as well as overall trends in mobile ownership and usage. M-commerce sales include sales of physical goods as well as travel and event tickets purchased via mobile, but exclude digital downloads and usage of mobile phones as a point-of-sale payment mechanism. eMarketer’s estimates for m-commerce sales do not include purchases made from tablet devices.

Recently, eBay stated that mobile shopping is mainstream now, and the company expects this holiday to be the largest mobile shopping season ever. Steve Yankovich, vice president of eBay Mobile, highlighted that shoppers are in the driver’s seat, with mobile technology putting the mall right in one’s pocket. In 2011, eBay expects to see nearly $5 billion in mobile sales (Gross Merchandise Volume); PayPal expects more than $3.5 billion in mobile payment volume.