Crawley internet books and music store StreetsOnline has postponed plans to float on the stock market.

Managing director Steve Cole delayed the flotation despite his firm's position as the most popular e-commerce website in Britain.

Mr Cole planned to put his company on the stock market in July but delayed the move and has now said the time is not right.

No decision will be made on the timing of the offering for three months, he added.

"We might delay it until next year, which I think is a better time.

"It would be much better to wait until a correct valuation."

Mr Cole said the "silly season" during which firms were overvalued had made investors cautious.

Investors lost confidence in the internet in March, sending values plunging.

Companies such as Durlacher which attracted huge share prices last year are now undervalued, some analysts have suggested.

The flotation would have given the website's 1.5 million users preferential access to shares and would have raised £75 million.

The company has recently opened its entertainment exchange to businesses, selling its services to companies rather than consumers for the first time.

StreetsOnline attracted 1.5 million unique users every month.

Amazon.co.uk, the next most popular e-commerce site, gets just 1.42 million.

www.streetsonline.co.uk