SHANGHAI - Third quarter is generally considered a slack season in the retail industry, but China's online business-to-consumer (B2C) market grew by 49.7 percent, according to a report released Monday by Analysys International.

Transactions reached 503.6 billion yuan ($78.8 billion) in the third quarter this year. Alibaba's Tmall led the way by claiming a share of 54 percent, followed by JD.com with 23.2 percent and Vipshop, a major flash sale operator.

Tmall, JD.com, Vipshop and their respective business models represent the big picture of China's B2C market, the report said.

The Internet research company also said e-commerce had entered a new phase where an industry reshuffle and big data applications had become key.