People to spend a lot of real money on a lot of virtual goods this holiday season, study says

Elastic Path Software, a Vancouver-based tech company, released a research paper today entitled, “Virtual Goods Mean Real Money This Holiday.” The paper reveals that attracting the digital goods consumer will equate to big business this holiday season.

According to the data, 20% of shoppers to spend less this holiday season than they did last year with just 15% to spend more. But 30% of digital goods shoppers plan to spend more on all gifts—digital and physical—with only 13% to spend less. Now that's a very tangible silver lining. Furthermore, consumers pursuing digital goods also boast an average of $440—a full 40% more than their non-digital counterparts.

The handy thing about digital goods is convenience is that they can be bought on Christmas Eve and still ready in time for the special morning. There's no hectic parking lots to contend with and crazed shoppers in lengthy lines. 29% of digital goods shoppers cite last-minute, instant-delivery purchases as the top convenience, while 24% simply like the fact they're faster and easier to purchase. 22% love the lack of shipping charges and 19% are happiest that they don't need to wrap anything.

So what digital goods do people want? 11% are interested in ebooks and the same amount are interested in music, with 10% wanting mobile apps and 8% wanting games.

Will you be buying digital gifts this holiday? Do you expect to recieve many?