As retail and e-commerce merge, smartphones and tablets become integral shopping tool at eBay, where the devices are expected to account for more than US$5B in sales this year

Yohana Valdez

Los Angeles , November 7, 2011 (Industry Intelligence) – Relying on the fact that the web was utilized for nearly half of all retail purchases last year, eBay Inc. treats smartphones as another vehicle for accessing the web. The company has adapted to growing mobile trends by implementing services that permit customers to shop via their phones, Internet Retailer reported Nov. 3.

These days, retailers must have a mobile presence, said eBay president and CEO John Donahoe at the Open Mobile Summit in San Francisco. One strategy that eBay employs is a bar code scanning application. The app provides eBay search results, and also gives results for nearby stores and other online retailers, such as Amazon.com.

Smartphones and tablets will account for over $5 billion in sales this year at eBay, while PayPal will process over $3.5 billion in payments on the apparatuses, the publication stated.

E-retailers considering mobile options should consider the variety and popularity of technological gadgets so as to encourage consumers who alternate between smartphones, tablets and other mobile devices, said Donahoe.

The primary source of this article is Internet Retailer, Chicago, Illinois, on Nov. 3, 2011.

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