The downward trend is due to consumers' increased expectations during the holiday season, a much larger influx of infrequent visitors that may not know how to navigate a site and shipping costs, and the unavailability of prominent items like the Xbox 360 due to low inventory.

Going forward, we would expect to see satisfaction trend back upward now that the holiday rush is over.

During this critical stage in the holiday shopping season, online retailers face huge challenges to maintaining high satisfaction. Those who aren't able to meet customer expectations online during the last week or two of the holiday shopping season risk the long-term impact of lessened customer loyalty during the weeks and quarters to come.

The days leading up to the holiday pose a huge challenge for online retailers, who haven't yet figured out how to maintain high customer satisfaction during this critical juncture.

Holiday sales are not meeting expectations. For the December quarter, it is likely the industry will be down double digits on a percentage basis.

The 2002 holiday season will likely be a moderate one, not blowing away modest expectations, but not disappointing them either.