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NPD discovers why people braved the Black Friday crowds

NPD, known in the video game world for its US sales charts, has released its first study of the Black Friday phenomenon. "The Anatomy of Black Friday 2009" is based on a survey of 1,700 shoppers about their Black Friday shopping activities. Why, exactly, did shoppers wake up at ridiculous times and stand out in the cold just for the privilege of being crammed into Best Buy or wherever like sardines? For 35% of Black Friday shoppers, it was a specific item. "I saw an item I wanted advertised on sale" was the top response, followed by "I was just curious to see what was out there."

The top reason for not subjecting themselves to the crowds and queues to buy anything on Black Friday? No, it wasn't "I'm not crazy," it was "no money."