Recession Creates New Holiday Shopping Trends

PriceGrabber.com(R) data reveals: 70 percent are researching and comparison
shopping online, 53 percent of consumers are taking coworkers off gift lists,
and 36 percent anticipate holiday spending between $100 and $499

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- PriceGrabber.com®, a part of Experian,
explores the impact of the economy on holiday spending in its latest Holiday
Forecast Consumer Behavior Report. Survey data reveals that the state of the
economy is shaping new trends in holiday shopping. More than ever, comparison
shopping is on the forefront of consumers' minds, with 70 percent of consumers
doing more research and comparison shopping online, compared with 38 percent
last year.

Consumers are also crossing acquaintances (57 percent) and coworkers (53
percent) off their gift lists. Other findings from the PriceGrabber.com survey
of 2,018 online consumers conducted from Sept. 24, 2009 to Oct. 12, 2009,
reveal:

Consumers are cutting back -- 53 percent plan to spend less
Many consumers have made a concerted effort to cut back over the last year due
to the recession. A recent PriceGrabber.com survey revealed that these efforts
will continue into the holiday shopping season and set the stage for new
trends in holiday shopping. Fifty-three percent of consumers are planning to
spend less than they did last year. Of the consumers who are planning to spend
less this year, 48 percent reveal that one of the reasons that they are
spending less is due to an increase in prices (necessities, gas, etc.), 45
percent cite lack of confidence in the economy, and 38 percent indicate making
less money as a reason for spending less.

Shopping starts earlier to ease the impact of holiday spending -- 22 percent
start their holiday shopping in October
Cutting back on spending is not the only holiday trend being impacted by the
recession. In past years, Black Friday (the day after Thanksgiving) has been
the unofficial start of the holiday shopping season. This year, consumers are
planning to start their holiday shopping long before Black Friday, with 22
percent of consumers starting their holiday shopping in October and 29 percent
starting in November.

Gift lists are trimmed down to manage budgets -- 57 percent are not purchasing
gifts for acquaintances
Consumers are also making some significant cuts to the number of people on
their holiday gift lists. When consumers were asked to compare this year's
gift list to last year's, 57 percent of consumers revealed that they are not
purchasing gifts for the acquaintances that they purchased gifts for last
year. Fifty-three percent of consumers are not purchasing gifts for the
co-workers that they purchased gifts for last year. When it comes to holiday
spending this year, 36 percent of consumers expect to spend between $100 and
$499, 28 percent plan to spend $500 to $999, and 30 percent anticipate a
holiday spend of $1,000 or more.

Consumers are using more money-saving techniques -- 50 percent shop at
discount or outlet stores
This year, in order to meet holiday spending budgets, more consumers are
utilizing money-saving techniques for their holiday shopping when compared
with last year's PriceGrabber.com survey, Holiday Consumer Spending Survey
(2,641 respondents, conducted from Oct. 20, 2008, to Nov. 10, 2008). Fifty
percent of consumers are planning to shop at discount or outlet stores this
year, while only 43 percent did so last year. Twenty-nine percent of consumers
are planning to purchase gifts for fewer people this year, while only 10
percent did so last year.

PriceGrabber.com will continue to track the impact of the economy on holiday
trends. To view the full Consumer Behavior Report on economic trends and
consumer spending, please visit
http://www.pricegrabber.com/about.php/about=press/sub_opt=15.

About PriceGrabber.com

PriceGrabber.com, part of Experian Interactive(SM), has established itself as
one of the most trusted and effective online comparison shopping services,
allowing approximately 23 million consumers each month to search and compare
information that enables them to find the right product from the right
retailer at the best price. Through continued innovation and a consistent
focus on providing the best comparison shopping experience on the Internet,
PriceGrabber.com provides savvy shoppers access to millions of unique products
and services from thousands of retailers and sellers in 25 product channels.
The company also powers comparison shopping functionality for a network of
leading Internet sites, including Bing, AOL Shopping, About.com, iVillage,
Comcast and CNET. The company offers comparison shopping in English (at
http://www.pricegrabber.com), Spanish (at http://www.preciomania.com) and
Portuguese (at http://www.precomania.com) as well as international sites in
Canada and the United Kingdom.

PriceGrabber.com is headquartered in Los Angeles, Calif. PriceGrabber is a
registered trademark, and PriceGrabber.com and BottomLinePrice(TM) are
trademarks of PriceGrabber.com, Inc., a Delaware corporation. Other trademarks
or registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

About Experian
Experian is the leading global information services company, providing data
and analytical tools to clients in more than 65 countries. The company helps
businesses to manage credit risk, prevent fraud, target marketing offers and
automate decision making. Experian also helps individuals to check their
credit report and credit score and protect against identity theft.

Experian plc is listed on the London Stock Exchange (EXPN) and is a
constituent of the FTSE 100 index. Total revenue for the year ended March 31,
2009, was $3.9 billion. Experian employs approximately 15,000 people in 40
countries and has its corporate headquarters in Dublin, Ireland, with
operational headquarters in Nottingham, UK; Costa Mesa, California; and Sao
Paulo, Brazil.

For more information, visit http://www.experianplc.com.

SOURCE PriceGrabber.com

Michelle Kane of PriceGrabber.com, +1-323-601-1289, mkane@pricegrabber.com; or
Eve McGrath of Rubenstein Public Relations, +1-212-843-8490,
emcgrath@rubensteinpr.com, for PriceGrabber.com