New Delhi, Oct 12 (IANS): With rapid increase in mobile data consumption, mobile commerce (m-commerce) is set to overtake web browsers in driving sales soon, according to a seasonal data in anticipation of Diwali, released on Wednesday.

The data gathered by Criteo, the performance marketing technology company, showed that during the festive season last year, "40 per cent of the online traffic on major retail companies was generated by mobile phones".

Clearly, m-commerce is experiencing a tremendous rise in India.

"Customers prefer buying new brands from upcoming shopping websites, where they are offered best prices as well as discounts. With the ease of m-commerce, they get the option to explore thousands of brands at the click of a button," a Criteo statement said.

The in-app availability of e-commerce companies has further triggered the rise of m-commerce in India, according to the company.

With the growing popularity of e-commerce companies in India, the festive season presents with an opportunity for a fierce competition among key Indian retailers.

Various e-commerce platforms launch mega-sales before the festive period, thereby launching a brand war with high budget spending on advertising as well as sales offers on consumer durable products and services.

Based on consumers' online browsing and buying activity during the peak season last year (October 8-November 8), the pre-Diwali period saw an upsurge in average visitors on key Indian retailers' websites, leading to an increase in average sales of e-commerce companies.

According to Criteo's findings, which are based on an analysis of six million online transactions made in India last year, the rise in average online traffic on key retail companies' websites reached up to 35 per cent. Also, during the same period, the maximum sale on these websites went up to 87 per cent.

"The technology-savvy users today want to explore new brands and choose from the variety of product categories, services and e-commerce platforms. With easy return policies, various payment options, cash on delivery and quick delivery services, it is expected that online shoppers in India may reach 175 million by 2020," said company's Commercial Director, Dushyant Sapre.