Online shoppers are nearly three times more likely to find what they want on the Web by using search engines versus responding to advertisements according to a survey conducted by Internet financial transaction firm WorldPay. The most popular goods and services purchased online are CDs/videos/DVDs (purchased by 72 percent of respondents), books (61 percent), travel (52 percent) and Internet/computer (50 percent).

The survey -- the first by WorldPay of its customers -- was conducted from September through the first week of February, eliciting responses from 15,235 online shoppers in 124 countries. All respondents made purchases from e-retailers using the Sterling, Va.-based WorldPay, which provides multiple language, multi-currency support for e-commerce transactions.

"Though analysts' estimates on the future value of global ecommerce vary from between $5 trillion to $8 trillion over the next several years, no one disputes that growth will be prodigious," said David Talley, WorldPay's vice president - Americas. "With so much at stake for companies entering the global e-commerce arena, we believe the WorldPay survey is a good start toward improved understanding of shopper attitudes, concerns, and motivation."

Other key findings included:

WorldPay supports more than 14,000 online merchants in 115 countries, allowing them to tap markets beyond their borders. The privately-held company was founded in 1993 and its shareholders include NatWest Bank Plc. and Energis Plc. WorldDirect, WorldPay's multi-currency payment system, is integrated to most of the leading e-commerce store-building applications, including its own Click and Build. Other WorldPay services include repeat billing solution FuturePay.

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