Asia Pacific Search Volume Reaches Record Level in September

Wed Nov 4, 2009 11:00am EST
 
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Local Players and Global Brands Compete for Top Spots across Markets




SINGAPORE CITY, Singapore, Nov. 4 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- comScore, Inc.
(Nasdaq: SCOR), a leader in measuring the digital world, today released its
latest report on search activity in the Asia-Pacific region based on data from
its qSearch service. The study found that 38.6 billion searches were conducted
in the region in September 2009, with searchers averaging nearly 88 queries
per person during the month. Google Sites ranked as the top search destination
in Asia Pacific, commanding more than 44 percent share of searches performed
in the region. 

(Logo:  http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080115/COMSCORELOGO)

Google Sites Captures Largest Share of Search in Asia Pacific 
In September 2009, Internet users in Asia Pacific conducted 38.6 billion
search queries, an increase of 33 percent from the previous year. Google Sites
was the top search destination with nearly 17 billion searches performed on
its sites during the month, accounting for 44.1 percent share of all searches
in the region. Baidu.com Inc. followed with 8.2 billion searches (21.3 percent
share), while Yahoo! Sites grabbed the #3 position with 5.3 billion searches
(13.8 percent share). 

Searchers in the region averaged nearly 88 searches per person during
September. South Korea's NHN Corporation, which owns search engine Naver.com,
saw the most prolific search intensity among the top 10 destinations with an
average of 81 searches per searcher. Searchers on Google Sites averaged 59
searches per person, while searchers on Lycos Sites averaged 51 queries. 

    Top 10 Search Properties in Asia Pacific by No. of Searches
    September 2009
    Total Asia Pacific Internet Audience*, Age 15+ - Home & Work Locations
    Source: comScore qSearch
    ------------------------
                                                    Searches
                             Searches   Share of      Per
                              (MM)      Searches    Searcher
                          ----------   ---------   ---------
    Total Internet            38,585       100.0%       87.5
    --------------            ------       -----        ----
    Google Sites              16,997        44.1%       58.5
    --------------            ------        ----        ----
    Baidu.com Inc.             8,228        21.3%       44.5
    --------------             -----        ----        ----
    Yahoo! Sites               5,340        13.8%       41.3
    ------------               -----        ----        ----
    NHN Corporation            1,959         5.1%       80.5
    ---------------            -----         ---        ----
    Microsoft Sites            1,093         2.8%        9.5
    ---------------            -----         ---         ---
    Lycos Sites                  997         2.6%       51.0
    -----------                  ---         ---        ----
    Alibaba.com Corporation      949         2.5%       15.6
    -----------------------      ---         ---        ----
    Tencent Inc.                 790         2.0%        8.6
    ------------                 ---         ---         ---
    Facebook.com                 259         0.7%        8.0
    ------------                 ---         ---         ---
    Sohu.com Inc.                230         0.6%        8.9
    -------------                ---         ---         ---

    *Excludes visitation from public computers such as Internet cafes or
     access from mobile phones or PDAs.




Local Players and Global Brands Compete for Searcher Loyalty Across Markets  
An analysis of top search destinations across the 10 individual markets in the
Asia-Pacific region currently reported by comScore revealed various search
brand preferences across markets. Google Sites was the search market share
leader in six of the markets including Australia, India, Japan, Malaysia, New
Zealand and Singapore. Yahoo! Sites captured the majority share of searches in
Hong Kong (58.9 percent) and Taiwan (65.4 percent). 

Although multinational search brands led many of the markets in the region,
the popularity of local brands was evident in both China and South Korea.
Baidu.com Inc. led as China's top search destination with 63 percent share of
searches performed, while NHN Corporation captured 49.3 percent of queries in
Korea, leading the market as the top destination.

    Top Search Property in Individual Asia Pacific Markets by Share of
    Searches
    September 2009
    Total Internet Audience*, Age 15+ - Home & Work Locations
    Source: comScore qSearch
    ------------------------

                    Top Search
                    Property in             Share of
                      Market                Searches
                  ---------------           --------
    Australia      Google Sites                 83.4%
    ---------      ------------                 ----
    China          Baidu.com Inc.               63.0%
    -----          --------------               ----
    Hong Kong      Yahoo! Sites                 58.9%
    ---------      ------------                 ----
    India          Google Sites                 89.1%
    -----          ------------                 ----
    Japan          Google Sites                 47.5%
    -----          ------------                 ----
    Malaysia       Google Sites                 71.1%
    --------       ------------                 ----
    New Zealand    Google Sites                 80.5%
    -----------    ------------                 ----
    Singapore      Google Sites                 72.3%
    ---------      ------------                 ----
    South Korea    NHN Corporation              49.3%
    -----------    ---------------              ----
    Taiwan         Yahoo! Sites                 65.4%
    ------         ------------                 ----

    * Excludes visitation from public computers such as Internet cafes or
      access from mobile phones or PDAs.



"The competition between local and global brands to capture search market
share around the world continues to be an ongoing battle," said Will Hodgman,
comScore executive vice president for the Asia-Pacific region. "As
multinational brands continue to expand across borders, understanding the
online behaviors and preferences of local audiences will be a central
component to implementing successful digital marketing strategies that
capitalize on this lucrative and growing market." 

About comScore
comScore, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCOR) is a global leader in measuring the digital
world and preferred source of digital marketing intelligence. For more
information, please visit www.comscore.com/companyinfo.

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SOURCE  comScore, Inc.

Sarah Radwanick of comScore, Inc., +1-312-775-6538, press@comscore.com

 

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