If any of your Christmas presents were a bit odd-looking or seemed like impulse buys, it might be because the gift giver did his or her shopping using a small, accessible screen.  eBay reported today that mobile transactions picked up dramatically this holiday season compared to last.

The volume of mobile transactions tripled on a year-over-year basis, according to eBay, and the current rate of unique mobile visits per day is around 750,000.  People aren't just grabbing lots of cheap odds and ends, either, considering that a 23-foot boat recently sold for $19,108 and a Steinway grand piano sold for $10,000.

Then here's a curious detail: mobile commerce seems to have become especially popular in the Lone Star State, since "[f]our of the top 10 U.S. ZIP codes for number of people buying via their mobile phones are from Texas."

Anyway, Lorrie Norrington, the president of eBay marketplaces, concluded, "Mobile is changing the way people shop this holiday season. . . .  eBay buyers and sellers have rapidly embraced mobile commerce this year, and this holiday season has been a mobile commerce tipping point.  Shopping will never be the same again."

eBay sellers and regular retailers who haven't already done so are sure to spend the next several months adapting.

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