When We're Not Re-Gifting, We're Selling

Nearly half of us re-give or re-sell unwanted holiday presents

A growing number of consumers are turning to the Internet to dispose of gifts they don't want, according to a survey sponsored by eBay Inc. that we found here.

According to the story, eBay said more than four in five (83 percent) of those it asked said they receive unwanted items and almost half (46 percent) of those adults re-sell or give the unwanted gift to someone else as a gift.

Of those who have sold their gifts online in the past, more than half (54 percent) of U.S. adults plan to do so again this year, compared to 45 percent last year.

eBay found differences in what people said they would re-sell and what they would re-gift.

The most popular items adults who took the survey said they would re-gift include wine, champagne or spirits (21 percent); trinkets or collectibles (21 percent); beauty or bath products (21 percent); DVDs, CDs or books (16 percent); electronics/appliances (14 percent); and fruitcake (14 percent).

The most popular items adults re-sell online include personal electronics (12 percent); DVDs, CDs or books (11 percent); home technology (10 percent); event tickets (10 percent); trinkets or collectibles (8 percent); and sporting or fitness equipment (6 percent).

eBay said the survey was conducted online by Harris Interactive between Nov. 11 and Nov. 13 among 2,033 U.S. adults age 18 and older, of whom 1,013 have re-gifted and 210 have resold gifts online.