As much as 90 per cent of retail sales will be influenced by online advertising and the availability of e-commerce by 2020, according to the Interactive Media in Retail Group (IMRG).
 
David Smith, director of operations at the IMRG, said that a number of key drivers, such as the ease of paying for goods with credit cards online to the rise of broadband connections, mean the popularity of e-commerce is only set to grow.
 
"There is a lot more use of rich media, for example, so if you are buying clothes or want to spin or zoom in on a product, the use of rich media on broadband is a much better experience, from a usability point of view, than if you were doing it on a dial-up," he added.
 
UK consumers spent £38 billion online in 2009, research from Kelkoo has revealed, accounting for almost one-third of all European sales.