Comscore Releases First Public Report of Online Usage in Singapore
SINGAPORE CITY, Singapore, March 27, 2009 – Comscore, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCOR), a leader in measuring the digital world, today released its first overview of Web usage in Singapore. The report includes a ranking of the most engaging and visited Internet site categories and properties, based on the Comscore World Metrix service, and the top search properties, based on the Comscore qSearch service. In February 2009, more than 2.5 million people in Singapore age 15 and older accessed the Internet from home and work locations, consuming an average of 1,785 pages of content and accessing the Internet an average of 21 hours per person.
“Singapore is one of the most advanced digital markets in the Asia-Pacific region and represents a growing opportunity for digital marketers,” said Will Hodgman, Comscore executive vice president. “The combination of high broadband penetration, heavy online engagement and the overall tech savvy of Internet users in Singapore make it an ideal market for the adoption of valuable existing and emerging digital technologies, including search, social media and online video.”
Instant Messaging Captures Largest Share of Singaporeans’ Time Online
Internet users in Singapore averaged 21 hours online per visitor during February, with online communication, entertainment, and social networking topping the list of how users were most likely to spend their time. Highlighting the particular significance of online communication in Singapore, Instant Messaging captured 24 percent of total minutes, making it the leading activity, while Web-based email accounted for 6 percent.
Singaporeans spent 14 percent of their online time at the Entertainment category, which includes popular Web brands like YouTube and MediaCorp, while social networking accounted for 8 percent.
Top Site Categories in Singapore Based on Time Spent February 2009Total Singapore Internet Audience*, Age 15+ - Home & Work LocationsSource: Comscore World Metrix
Share (%) of Total Minutes Spent Online
Total Internet
100.0%
Instant Messengers
24.2%
Entertainment
13.8%
Social Networking
8.0%
e-mail
5.7%
Online Gaming
2.4%
Search/Navigation
2.3%
Blogs
2.1%
Business/Finance
1.9%
Community
1.5%
News/Information
1.3%
All Other Categories
37.0%
*Excludes visitation from public computers such as Internet cafes or access from mobile phones or PDAs.
Facebook and Friendster Rank as Two of the Most Visited Online Properties
Google Sites ranked as the most visited Internet property in Singapore with 2 million visitors in February 2009, reaching nearly 80 percent of the online population. Microsoft Sites followed in second with 1.9 million visitors (77 percent reach), while Yahoo! Sites ranked third with 1.8 million visitors (70 percent reach).
Social networking sites also made an appearance in the ranking, including Facebook.com, which reached more than 1 million visitors and ranked as the fourth most visited property in February, and Friendster.com, which ranked sixth with 838,000 visitors.
Top Internet Properties in Singapore Based on Unique VisitorsFebruary 2009Total Singapore Internet Audience*, Age 15+ - Home & Work LocationsSource: Comscore World Metrix
Total Unique Visitors (000)
% Reach
2,523
Google Sites
2,009
79.6%
Microsoft Sites
1,929
76.5%
Yahoo! Sites
1,757
69.7%
Facebook.com
1,128
44.7%
Wikimedia Foundation Sites
848
33.6%
Friendster.com
838
33.2%
CBS Interactive
529
21.0%
Apple Inc.
515
20.4%
Ask Network
510
20.2%
WordPress
475
18.8%
Google Attracts Majority of Searches in Singapore
According to Comscore qSearch, 221 million searches were conducted in Singapore in February, a 43-percent increase versus year ago. Google Sites led the search market with 146 million searches conducted (66 percent search market share), followed by Yahoo! Sites with 39 million searches (17 percent) and Baidu.com Inc. with 8 million searches (4 percent). Google searchers were also the most prolific with an average of 74 search queries per searcher during the month.
Top Search Properties in Singapore by Query Volume February 2009Total Singapore Internet Audience*, Age 15+ - Home & Work LocationsSource: Comscore qSearch
Searches (MM)
Searches Per Searcher
Share of Searches
221
100.6
146
74.0
66.0%
39
27.8
17.4%
Baidu.com Inc.
8
29.2
3.8%
5
7.4
2.5%
9.2
2.2%
Sohu.com Inc.
24.2
FACEBOOK.COM
4
8.0
FRIENDSTER.COM
3
6.6
1
5.0
0.6%
eBay
8.6
0.5%
*Excludes searches from public computers such as Internet cafes or access from mobile phones or PDAs.
About Comscore Comscore, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCOR) is a global leader in measuring the digital world and preferred source of digital marketing intelligence. In an independent survey of 800 of the most influential publishers, advertising agencies and advertisers conducted by William Blair & Company in January 2009, Comscore was rated the 'most preferred online audience measurement service' by 50% of respondents, a full 25 points ahead of its nearest competitor. Comscore's capabilities are based on a massive, global cross-section of approximately 2 million Internet users 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 gathers and integrates their attitudes and intentions. Using its proprietary technology, Comscore measures what matters across a broad spectrum of digital behavior and attitudes, helping clients design more powerful marketing strategies that deliver superior ROI. With its acquisition of M:Metrics, Comscore is also a leading source of data on mobile usage. Comscore services are used by more than 1,100 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, Nestle, Starcom, Universal McCann, the United States Postal Service, the University of Chicago, Verizon Services Group and ViaMichelin. For more information, please visit www.comscore.com.
Contact:Sarah RadwanickDirector, Regional Product MarketingComscore, Inc. +44 (0) 20 7099 1784worldpress@comscore.com