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LONDON, U.K., January 22, 2008 – Comscore, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCOR), a leader in measuring the digital world, today released the results of a study of the worldwide traffic to the online properties of traditional U.K. media brands, based on data from the Comscore World Metrix audience measurement service. The study revealed that online visitors originating from outside the U.K. outnumbered the domestic audience for the BBC, The Guardian, The Telegraph, The Times, and The Daily Mail.
The Daily Mail had the highest proportion of international visitors, with 69 percent of its 7.6 million visitors originating from outside the U.K. The BBC attracted 59 percent of its audience internationally, while the Telegraph (57 percent) and the Guardian Media Group (56 percent) also drew more than half their respective audiences from outside the U.K. Only two of the ten sites studied, British Sky Broadcasting (BSkyB) and ITV Sites, had less than a quarter of their traffic originate internationally.
International Visitor Composition of Selected Leading U.K. Traditional Media BrandsRanked by Total U.K. Unique Visitors (000)November 2007Age 15+ Home and Work Locations*Source: Comscore World Metrix
Property
Total U.K. Unique Visitors (000)
Total Worldwide
Unique Visitors
(000)
International as % of Worldwide Traffic**
BBC Sites
18,897
45,967
59%
British Sky Broadcasting (BSkyB)
7,654
9,565
20%
ITV Sites
5,923
7,677
23%
Guardian Media Group
3,666
8,301
56%
TheSun.co.uk
3,321
6,000
45%
Channel4
3,255
5,234
38%
Telegraph Group Ltd
2,679
6,226
57%
Times Online
2,422
5,390
55%
DailyMail.co.uk
2,369
7,556
69%
Independent.co.uk
899
1,785
50%
* Excludes traffic from public computers such as Internet cafes or access from mobile phones or PDAs
** International traffic defined as online visitation originating from outside the U.K.
“In recent years, U.K. media companies have been able to acquire significant international audiences by leveraging their brands online,” said Bob Ivins, EVP of European Markets for Comscore. “The Internet is a truly global medium, allowing consumers to easily access content from anywhere in the world. It is critical that publishers and advertisers understand their global franchise – not just their U.K. audiences.”
Several U.K. TV news media brands experienced online growth during the past year. BBC Sites, the largest property in the study, gained five percent versus year ago to reach nearly 46 million worldwide unique visitors in November 2007, while ITV Sites grew 37 percent to 7.7 million, and Channel4 increased 28 percent to 5.2 million. There were also significant increases in traffic to a number of online newspaper sites, including the DailyMail.co.uk (up 153 percent to 7.6 million visitors) and the Telegraph Group Ltd (up 129 percent to 6.2 million visitors).
Visitation to Selected Leading U.K. Traditional Media Brand SitesRanked by Total Worldwide Unique Visitors (000)*Total Worldwide Age 15+ Home and Work Locations*November 2007 vs. November 2006Source: Comscore World Metrix
Media Brand
Total Unique Visitors (000)
Nov 2006
Nov 2007
% Change
Total Worldwide Internet Audience
736,072
810,779
10%
43,703
5%
9,679
-1%
7,210
15%
5,603
37%
2,984
153%
2,723
129%
4,130
4,053
33%
4,105
28%
1,625
About ComscoreComscore, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCOR) is a global leader in measuring the digital world. 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 analysts 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 more than 800 clients, including global leaders such as AOL, Microsoft, Yahoo!, BBC, Carat, Cyworld, Deutsche Bank, France Telecom, Best Buy, The Newspaper Association of America, Financial Times, ESPN, Fox Sports, Nestlé, Starcom, Universal McCann, the United States Postal Service, Verizon, ViaMichelin, Merck and Expedia. For more information, please visit www.comscore.com
Ayaan MohamudComscore, Inc.+ 44 (0) 207-099-1775worldpress@comscore.com