More than six per cent of all consumer book purchases in Great Britain are now made on the internet, according to a new report.

Figures for the 12 weeks to May 2000 show a rise of 330 per cent in the value of book sales compared with the same period last year.

But a report from internet research foundation IDC said smaller book stores are having difficulties matching the performance of Amazon.com.

IDC research analyst Christian Asmussen said: "Amazon has managed to generate sales several times higher than that of its nearest competitor.

"This seems surprising, given that it still lacks local store presence in most European countries."