Europe's top retailers are expected to sell $100bn-worth of IT kit this year.

And computer specialists are not solely responsible for this "strong performance": computer goods now account for 28-40 per cent of turnover of electrical retailing specialists.

The big supermarkets are also getting in on the act: they are making "significant inroads" into the computer retailing scene. So says IT Europa, the channel research firm, which has polled Europe's top 50 retailers.

The tenth annual edition of IT Europa's The Retail Channel in Europe – The Top 500, shows that the top 50 players account for 85 per cent of revenues.

IT Europa attributes sales growth to continued commoditisation of IT products, the increase in broadband usage across Europe and the growth in e-tail sales.

Here is a quote from Alan Norman, managing director at IT Europa: "Selling the PC can be the start of a long relationship with customers as they expand their systems with storage, wireless, video and other peripherals and software. To this end many retailers are developing their operations to cover the whole spectrum of IT solutions for consumers and small businesses." ®