Amazon is retail king, reaching 1 in 5 Web users

ComScore releases data that finds Amazon reached 20% of the global Internet population in June

I don’t know if anyone has noticed, but while Borders is scrambling to shed its dead weight of inventory by September, its clearance prices are still higher than Amazon’s.  It’s sad, really.  Sure, I can go grab a book from borders for 30% off the retail price, or I can just order it from Amazon for a dollar less and save myself the hassle of pushing my way through throngs of suburban yuppies in fanny packs.

And this, my friends, is why Amazon is the indomitable king of retail—both online and off.  One in five Internet users worldwide visited an Amazon site in the month of June, making Amazon the most visited retail property on the Web with 282 million visitors, according to new data released by comScore.

Other online giants also garnered a huge global following in the month of June, including eBay, which reached 16% of the global Internet population, and China’s Alibaba.com Corporation, which drew 156 million visitors, or 11% of the global Internet population.

Interestingly, while Amazon was the top worldwide property, it only ranked third among North American Web users.  What was the most popular property among North American visitors, you ask?  None other than Wal-Mart, whose sites drew a whopping 83% of the North American Internet population, while Hewlett Packard came in second, with a 45% reach, and Amazon came in third with a 35% reach.

While Wal-Mart dominated the North American market, however, its presence outside of the U.S. is miniscule, reaching some 9% of European users, 6% of Latin American users, and no Asian or Middle-Eastern/African users.  Amazon is much more evenly spread out across the globe, with 35% of North American users, 31% of European users, 24% of Asian users, and 4% of Asian and Middle-Eastern/African users each.

“While retail e-commerce has already grown to become a $150+ billion annual industry in the U.S., it still presents enormous upside opportunity across much of the globe,” said Gian Fulgoni, comScore co-founder and chairman, in a statement. “Technology has changed the way consumers behave, and increasingly they are opting for the convenience and pricing advantages offered by the online channel. Several global retail brands have already capitalized on this global consumer trend, and many other retailers are sure to pursue their share of the pie.”