Amazon is now generating between $3 billion and $5 billion annually in sales originating from mobile devices.
Those aren’t Amazon’s official numbers, but they are knowledgeable estimates from Citi analyst Neil Doshi.
So despite those obviously large numbers, is the significance of mobile’s role in Amazon’s world today really that monumental?
Tricia Duryee of All Things D doesn’t really think so.
“Take a look at the facts,” Duryee cautions. “Based on Amazon’s 2012 revenue forecast, the company’s net sales will total somewhere around $60 billion in 2012, which means that mobile sales will equate to 5 percent to 8 percent of total dollars spent on Amazon.”
In other words, mobile is less of a juggernaut force for Amazon sales than some might have previously expected. In fact, Amazon’s performance is comparatively underwhelming.
Take a look at eBay. It’s anticipating mobile sales to hit $10 billion in 2012, which is at least twice as much as Doshi’s conservative estimate for Amazon. That could equate to nearly 16 percent of eBay’s 2012 revenue — which is double what it was in 2011, and double Amazon’s estimated percentage in 2012.
Of course, no one is suggesting that Amazon’s mobile-related sales revenue won’t climb in the years ahead. But it may take longer than anticipated before those numbers really start to impress.
