Half of All U.S. Internet Users Visited News Sites in June 2006, According to comScore Networks
RESTON, Va., Aug. 7 /PRNewswire/ — comScore Media Metrix today released an analysis of consumer activity at general news sites. More than half (54 percent) of all U.S. Internet users visited sites in the General News category in June 2006, demonstrating consumers’ reliance on the Web as a source for news information.
The top 10 General News sites reflect consumers’ preferred sources for news online, with most sites having ties to traditional media outlets, with the exception of category leader Yahoo! News. In June, Yahoo! News reached 31.2 million unique visitors (one-third of all category visitors), followed by MSNBC, which captured 23.4 million (one-quarter) of those who visited General News sites in June 2006. AOL News rounded out the top three with 20.4 million unique visitors in June, reaching 22 percent of category visitors.
Top 10 General News Sites by Unique Visitors Unique Visitors (000) June 2006 Total U.S. – Home, Work and University Internet Users Source: comScore Media Metrix Category Jun-06 Reach Total Internet: Total Audience 172,907 N/A General News 94,070 100% Yahoo! News 31,186 33% MSNBC 23,393 25% AOL News 20,405 22% CNN 19,891 21% Internet Broadcasting 9,518 10% The New York Times Brand 8,593 9% Tribune Newspapers 8,456 9% Knight Ridder Digital 7,585 8% ABCNEWS DIGITAL 7,533 8% USATODAY Sites 7,252 8%
On a worldwide basis, the General News category reached approximately 320 million unique visitors during June, which represents 45 percent of the total online audience worldwide.
“Interestingly, five of the top 10 General News sites worldwide are operated by U.S.-based companies,” said Jack Flanagan, executive vice president, comScore Media Metrix. “Yahoo! News is the category leader, both domestically and worldwide, while MSNBC and CNN rank among the top 5 news sites in the U.S. and among the worldwide Internet population.”
Top 10 General News Sites, Among Unique Visitors Age 15+ Unique Visitors (000) June 2006 Total Worldwide – All Locations Source: comScore World Metrix Category Jun-06 Reach Total Internet: Total Audience 712,976 N/A General News 319,964 100% Yahoo! News 76,245 24% CNN 30,413 10% MSNBC 28,557 9% 163.COM News 28,484 9% QQ.COM News 26,178 8% SINA News 25,810 8% AOL News 23,901 7% The New York Times Brand 13,068 4% BBC UKFS News (excl. home page) 11,949 4% TOM.COM News 10,016 3%
An analysis of reach by daypart reveals that the “Work Day” time segment reaches the most category visitors, delivering 33 percent of all visitors to General News sites. The Weekend and Evening dayparts are also popular news times, with a reach of 30 percent and 28 percent of all category visitors, respectively.
Daypart Analysis – General News Category Percent Reach by Daypart June 2006 Total U.S. – Home, Work and University Internet Users Source: comScore Media Metrix % Reach Early Morning 23.9 Work Day 32.6 Evening 27.8 Weekend 30.3
The comScore analysis also revealed that the General News category audience includes sought-after demographic segments, including men and women across age segments. General News visitors also tend to have higher incomes, with 58 percent living in households with income above $60,000. They are 11 percent more likely than the norm to have a household income of $75,000 and 16 percent more likely than average to earn more than $100,000.
“With nearly 95 million Americans turning to the Web each month for news, it’s clear that this category represents a strong opportunity for advertisers seeking to reach an important audience segment,” commented Flanagan. “Moreover, their high household incomes make News visitors a desirable target for marketers across a variety of categories of goods and services.”
Demographic Profile – General News Visitors June 2006 Total U.S. – Home, Work and University Internet Users Source: comScore Media Metrix Percent Composition Composition Index Males – Age All Males 50.2 101 Male: 25-34 7.9 111 Male: 35-44 9.6 112 Males: 45-54 10.6 114 Male: 55-64 7.3 111 Females – Age All Females 49.8 99 Female: 25-34 8.1 108 Female: 35-44 10.6 109 Females: 35-49 16.7 110 Females: 45-54 12.4 111 Female: 55-64 5.4 106 HH Income (US) Household Income: $60K+ 57.7 109 Household Income: $75K+ 43.0 111 Household Income: $100k+ 25.4 116 About comScore Media Metrix
comScore Media Metrix, a division of comScore Networks, provides industry- leading Internet audience measurement services that report — with unmatched accuracy — details of online media usage, visitor demographics and online buying power for the home, work and university audiences across local U.S. markets and across the globe. comScore Media Metrix continues the tradition of quality and innovation established by its Media Metrix syndicated Internet ratings — long recognized as the currency in online media measurement among financial analysts, advertising agencies, publishers and marketers — while drawing upon comScore’s advanced technologies to address important new industry requirements. All comScore Media Metrix syndicated ratings are based on industry-sanctioned sampling methodologies.
About comScore Networks
comScore Networks is a global leader in measuring the digital age. This capability is based on a massive, global cross-section of more than 2 million consumers who have given comScore permission to confidentially capture their browsing and transaction behavior, including online and offline purchasing. comScore panelists also participate in survey research that captures and integrates their attitudes and intentions. Through its proprietary technology, comScore measures what matters across a broad spectrum of behavior and attitudes. comScore consultants apply this deep knowledge of customers and competitors to help clients design powerful marketing strategies and tactics that deliver superior ROI. comScore services are used by global leaders such as AOL, Microsoft, Yahoo!, Verizon, Best Buy, The Newspaper Association of America, Tribune Interactive, ESPN, Fox Sports, Nestle, MBNA, Universal McCann, the United States Postal Service, Merck and Expedia. For more information, please visit http://www.comscore.com/ .
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