E-Commerce Report 2010: Brandenburg and Bavaria improve their position in the German online trade ranking lists most

COLOGNE, 09 December 2010 – Brandenburg and Bavaria are the German federal states which have improved their ranking in German online trade most. That is one of the results of the E-Commerce Report 2010, which was recently published by Deutsche Card Services. For the first time ever, Brandenburg belongs to the top five states in online trade, and Bavaria climbed from rank 11 to rank 7. Bremen lost most, dropping from rank 4 to rank 11. Berlin remains the state with the highest e-commerce activity, followed by Hessen and Hamburg. Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Thuringia, Saxony-Anhalt and Saxony are bringing up the rear.

Bremen generates highest transaction values in e-commerce
While the inhabitants of Bremen are not particularly active in e-commerce, the state generates the highest transaction values, as its citizens often buy luxury goods (worth more than EUR 500) online. According to the study by the Deutsche Bank subsidiary, the citizens of Hamburg do the opposite and buy goods worth less than EUR 10 online – a value category which typically covers services such downloads. As a result, they are at the bottom of the transaction value list.

While Hamburg’s citizens do not spend much on each individual purchase, they are very regular customers at online shops. The analysis by two-digit postal areas puts them at the top of the list of the most diligent online purchasers, taking over from Essen (which dropped to rank 6) and ahead of the centre of Berlin and the postal digit area 63 (Aschaffenburg/Hanau/Offenbach am Main/Miltenberg). Among the top-20 of the most active online purchasers, Bonn/Remagen/Siegburg/Euskirchen (postal digit area: 53) improved its position most, whereas Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden/Landau in der Pfalz/Bruchsal (postal digit area: 76) lost most.

Credit card and giropay become more attractive in eastern federal states
A comparison between the western and eastern federal states showed that the latter are now more willing to use up-to-date online payment methods such as credit cards or giropay. The overall share of these payment methods rose to 46%, from 43% in the preceding year, and might touch the 50% threshold next year. Interestingly, third-party cards, such as American Express, Diners or retailer credit cards, are extremely popular in the eastern states. The Deutsche Card Services analysis found that these “other cards” are, in fact, the most popular “brand” in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, with a market share of 38.8%. Overall, the Report showed that credit cards are the most important payment method in all federal states.

Inhabitants of Frankfurt use cards most
Just like two years before, the most active credit card users hail from the centre of Frankfurt. The city took back its top rank from the centre of Berlin; the leader of the preceding year dropped to rank 11 and thus even lost its top-10 position. The E-Commerce Report 2010 by Deutsche Card Services showed that large cities are the main credit card strongholds. Surprisingly, two other parts of Berlin – the south and south-east (postal digit area: 12) and the north (postal digit area: 13) – are the regions where direct debits are most popular. Behind Frankfurt am Main, Munich, the centre of Hamburg and the postal digit area 40 (Dusseldorf, Hilden, Mettmann, Ratingen) are the regions with the most active card users.

Chargeback ratio is highest in Berlin
At 0.52%, Berlin registers the highest chargeback ratio of all federal states; the chargeback ratio is the share of credit card transactions charged back after a complaint by the cardholder. However, Berlin is also the state with the most active online shoppers. Deutsche Card Services found that the non-payment risk is once again lowest in Saxony-Anhalt. Hessen and Brandenburg offer high payment security, too: Hessen, a state where e-commerce activity is high, registers high payment security, and Brandenburg is the state where the overall non-payment risk is lowest for both card payments and direct debits. Overall, the Report shows that there are no major differences in terms of non-payment risk between the eastern and western federal states.

E-Commerce Report based on real-life purchasing transactions
The E-Commerce Report analyses purchasing and payment behaviour and non-payment risks in online trade; the study has been published annually since 2002. In contrast to other research, the study by the Deutsche Bank subsidiary is based on real-life purchases and not on surveys. It starts from about 24 million transactions processed via the Deutsche Card Services platform. All data are fully anonymised and comply with all data-protection requirements. The study is available for download from the online shop of Deutsche Card Services.

About Deutsche Card Services GmbH:
Deutsche Card Services broadens the range of cash management services offered by Deutsche Bank and offers international full-service solutions for debit and credit card acceptance and other non-cash payment methods. Proven risk minimization systems ensure that non-cash payment in e-commerce, in mail-order retailing and at the point of sale is easy, quick and secure. Unique online steering systems enable customers world-wide to monitor all of their transactions at any time. When implementing efficient payment solutions, the acquirer and payment service provider can rely not only on years of experience and a dependable technical platform, but, as part of the Group’s Global Transaction Banking (GTB) department, also on the global network of Deutsche Bank Group and its highly qualified resources as well as detailed global and local expertise.
www.deutsche-card-services.com

Press Contact:

Deutsche Card Services GmbH
Tobias F. Hauptvogel
Head of Marketing & Communications
Kaltenbornweg 1-3
50679 Cologne
Phone: +49 221 99577-728
Telefax: +49 221 99577-8728
pr.deucs@db.com
www.deutsche-card-services.com

This release was published on openPR.