Watch the Oprah-level gift-giving frenzy below, beginning at 3:20 (unless you want to hear the lovely Ms. Seyfried sing.)

Thanks to the growth of smartphones and tablets, which allow for “anytime, anywhere” shopping, eBay Inc. saw a surge in mobile commerce this past Monday across all divisions. On a year-over-year basis, mobile transacted volume more than doubled in the U.S. for eBay Marketplaces and nearly tripled for PayPal on a global basis. In addition, GSI saw a 287% increase in mobile sales in the U.S., compared to 2011.

PayPal research also noted that consumers around the world shopped on mobile most frequently from 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m., PST, on Cyber Monday — slightly later in the day than on Thanksgiving and Black Friday.

Steve Yankovich, eBay VP of Mobile, said the success of the entire “Thanksgiving roll” — the period from Thursday on – is a “real game-changer for eBay, making moments of inspiration instantly shoppable.”

eBay’s successes on both Cyber Monday and the shopping days before were noted in a number of top-tier media outlets, including Bloomberg Businessweek, Women’s Wear Daily and more.

Watch what Hill Ferguson, VP of Global Product at PayPal, had to say about this season’s top mobile trends in this video clip:

Shoppers reached for their mobile phones and tablets to stock up on holiday sales on Friday in greater numbers than the year before. eBay’s mobile transacted volume in the U.S. was more than 2.5 times greater on Black Friday — a 153% increase — compared to 2011, while PayPal saw an almost three-fold increase — 193% — in global mobile payment volume, compared to 2011. Meanwhile, GSI saw a 198% increase in mobile sales on Black Friday, when compared to 2011.

Interestingly, PayPal data revealed that Black Friday consumers around the world shopped on mobile devices most frequently between 12:00 p.m. and 1:00 p.m. PST — the same hour shoppers were making most of their online purchases on Thanksgiving day. Could mobile shopping be taking the place of small talk at family lunch gatherings?

EBay’s mobile strength this Black Friday grabbed the attention of media, earning top billing in TechCrunch, VentureBeat, and Slashgear. Ebay’s explosive growth in mobile commerce this holiday season was also highlighted in feature articles in Forbes and Reuters.

Check back for more updates on eBay Inc.’s holiday season and Cyber Monday figures.

Beginning at 5:23 p.m. E.T. Thanksgiving Day — a.k.a. the time you’re probably finishing up your turkey dinner — eBay will start announcing through its iPhone app the first of over 200 deals set to roll out between now and Cyber Monday. Deals — which include discounts on Samsung Galaxy tablets and assorted toys, jewelry pieces, electronics and more — will be released in multiples of 20, meaning that at any time, 20, 40,  or 60 deals could be available. Sale prices run the gamut from $4.99 to $1199.99.

But just as — if not more — important than the prices of the deals themselves are the quality of the brands represented in eBay’s ‘Shop After Hours’ program.  In addition to working with usual suspect technology partners, eBay’s Deals teams also struck arrangements with lifestyle brands like Kenneth Cole, Disney, and Estee Lauder to ensure consumers get a mix of diversified products over the next four days.

After all, online shoppers spent $2.3 billion over Thanksgiving weekend and Cyber Monday last year, according to comScore. With even more shoppers equipped with mobile phones this year, that figure will only go up.

“This chic case will be available to purchase on November 12th,” SheKnows commented. The collaboration with seven hot designers  includes men’s and women’s apparel, jewelry, home décor pieces and travel and electronics accessories — something for everyone on your list!

I’m working out of the eBay UK office in Richmond this week and have had some great meetings with a number of folks talking about all things social – from commerce to media to business. I’ve also been able to check out some cool stories coming out of the office here first-hand. Earlier this month, eBay UK launched its first-ever pop-up shop in London’s fashionable West End. The UK’s first-ever QR code shopping emporium, the eBay Christmas Boutique enabled shoppers to browse over 350 items provided by top-rated eBay sellers, who could purchase using mobile technology with just a few clicks.

Although there were physical items on display, all items were purchased on eBay using mobile devices. Naturally, I asked what was going to happen to all of the gifts on display throughout the shop. Turns out that many of the toys and gifts displayed in the Boutique have been donated to children’s charities.

The boutique was open Dec. 1 – 5 and although it meant it was only open for 5 days, they managed to attract over 2,500 walk-in customers. You can check out a full behind-the-scenes video below…

Cheers from the UK!
-RBH

Related Reads:
TameBay – Shopping at the eBay Christmas Boutique
techradar.com – In Pictures: eBay Christmas Boutique

To get the virtual gift giving started, click here or visit the eBay Facebook page and select “The More the Merrier” link on the left of the page. Once you agree to the rules and “like” the eBay Facebook page, you’ll be able to select up to 10 friends and family members on Facebook to give virtual gifts to, including some of the hottest products like iPads and digital cameras.

Once your friends “open” the virtual gift you gave to them on Facebook, they will be eligible to win the actual gift. If you and your group of friends are selected in one of the sweepstakes drawings, everyone in the group who opened their gifts will receive the real gift and you, as the gifter, will receive a $100 eBay Gift Certificate. You and your group of friends will receive one additional entry in the sweepstakes for every friend that opens his/her gift, so you could have a total of 11 entries if all of your friends open the gifts you send to them.

Starting on Nov. 15, you can also enter the sweepstakes using the Facebook mobile app on your phone or tablet. To enter via mobile, click on the link(s) contained in any of the wall posts regarding the sweepstakes on the eBay Facebook page. You can also access the sweepstakes through links that appear as notifications your friends’ walls who are participating in the sweepstakes or links to the sweepstakes that your friends may send directly to you.

A total of ten sweepstakes drawings will take place, with five weekly sweepstakes winners selected from Nov. 8 – Dec. 12, and five daily winners selected from Dec. 12 to 16.

You can find complete rules here.

Now, let the virtual gift giving begin!! Good luck!

Our first-ever eBay Mobile Boutique will be painting the town all things Holiday tomorrow, and spreading good tidings to our San Francisco community. The eBay Mobile Boutique will preview just some of the best products available on eBay and highlight today’s hottest gifting trends from “Eco-Excellence” to “Savvy Splurging.” There will also be interactive shopping kiosks showcasing live listings from local eBay sellers. And on-site merchandise displays will feature popular holiday gift items this season such as Zhu Zhu Pets, Beatles Rock Band, iPod Touch, Xbox 360, Elmo Tickle Hands, Twilight dolls and more.

Cool Yule! The first 100 guests to show up at the eBay Mobile Boutique on Wednesday, December 15th at 12 noon and share a secret password will receive a $50 eBay Gift card. To learn the password and share your holiday wish, visit www.eBayHoliday.com. Here are details on where to find us on the road.

Where:
eBay Mobile Boutique
Justin Herman Plaza – San Francisco
Market Street at Embarcadero

When:
Tuesday, December 15 from 11am – 6pm

To date, more than 20,000 people have visited the eBay Mobile Boutique which kicked off on November 10, and wraps up its coast-to-coast tour in Los Angeles later this week where we’ll have some very special visitors joining us – more on that later…. Meanwhile, check out some videos with Griff from the San Jose stop of the Mobile Boutique from last week.

See you on the road!

Video: Jim Griffith on the buzz around the eBay Mobile Boutique.

Video: Jim Griffith on How the Boutique Benefits Small Sellers.