comScore Releases 2009 Digital Report
By
| February 10, 2010
comScore has released "The comScore 2009 U.S. Digital Year in Review," recapping key trends in the U.S. digital media landscape, including search, online video, online advertising and mobile. (For the full report, click here).
Despite economic headwinds, consumers’ use of digital media climbed to new heights in 2009 as the Internet continued to evolve as an integral component of Americans’ lives.
Key findings highlighted in the report include:
- The U.S. core search market grew 16 percent in 2009, driven by a 6-percent gain in unique searchers and a 10-percent gain in search queries per searcher. Google and Bing led among the core search engines in terms of increases in market share.
- Six out of seven U.S. Internet users now view online video content in a month, with YouTube and Hulu continuing to experience rapid increase in viewership.
- In the past year, the mobile industry witnessed smartphone ownership increase from 11 percent to 17 percent of mobile users, while 3G phone ownership increased from 32 percent to 43 percent.
- Social networking continued to gain momentum in 2009 with nearly 4 out of 5 Internet users visiting a social networking site on a monthly basis, and Facebook and Twitter propelling much of the growth in the category.
- Display ad impressions grew 21 percent in 2009 as the online advertising sector increased its share of media spending. Growth was driven by an 8-percent increase in ad reach and a 12-percent increase in average frequency.