Commentary

Top Online Publishers

by OMMA Magazine Writers , June 1, 2009

Madn3ss to our M3thod

Given the disparate nature of online publishing, there's probably no simple way to compare the underlying advertising value derived by the industry's top publishers. The sheer reach of a portal like Yahoo or MSN vs. the targeted delivery of a NYTimes.com or Forbes.com. But that doesn't stop trade magazine editors from at least attempting to come up with a common denominator. So that's what we did, and we're calling it the RPUU, an acronym that stands for revenue per unique user reached by an individual publisher. The RPUU is derived from simple math based on our calculations for the annualized revenue and share of the top online publishers, and dividing it by the number of unique users they reach. Utilizing that method, you can compare the relative value of market leader Yahoo (an RPUU of $14.25) vs. that of the New York Times' About.com (86 cents).

Download the Top Online Publishers (PDF, 168K)

metrics, online publishing

4 comments about "Top Online Publishers".

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Jim Foulkrod, June 9, 2009 at 8:45 p.m.
I wonder if I could get a clarification on the numbers. Do the revenue numbers represent thousands of dollars per month (i.e Yahoo.com's advertising revenue is $1,656,000/month) or is it millions of dollars/year?
thanks
Jim
Reply

Art Pharn from Abroadcasting Company, June 12, 2009 at 8:12 p.m.

The revenue is in thousands per month (i.e. Yahoo $1,656,000(revenue) / 116,243 (visitors) = $14.25 (RUPP))

Jonas Halpren from Federated Media, June 23, 2009 at 5:46 p.m.

It is amazing how conversational sites are barely represented here. Shows that Nielsen's audience panel is flawed in represented.

John Capone from Whalebone, June 24, 2009 at 10:53 a.m.

@Jonas, The point you raise one is one of the stickier facing online publishing right now. How do you define a publisher? Everyone seems to have his own definition.