Commentary

General News Captured Half the Internet Visitors in June

General News Captured Half the Internet Visitors in June

In a recently released analysis of consumer activity at general news sites, comScore Media Metrix reported that more than half (54 percent) of all U.S. Internet users visited sites in the General News category in June 2006.

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.

U.S. Home, Work and University Internet Users June 2006

Unique Visitors (x000)

Category Reach

Total Internet 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%

Source: comScore Media Metrix

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.

Jack Flanagan, executive vice president, comScore Media Metrix, said "Interestingly, five of the top 10 General News sites worldwide are operated by U.S.-based companies..."

Top 10 Total Worldwide General News Sites, Among Unique Visitors (x000) Age 15+ June 2006

Jun-06

Category Reach

Total Internet 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%

Source: comScore World Metrix

The report also showed that the General News category audience includes visitors who 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.

Demographic Profile of General News Visitors(Total U.S. Home, Work and University Internet Users, June 2006)

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

Source: comScore Media Metrix

"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," concluded Flanagan.

For more on this study, please visit here.

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