Nielsen//Netratings Launches Internet Advertising Index; New Index Tracks Internet Advertising Trends

Business Wire, July 19, 1999

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 19, 1999--

Internet advertising to home users increased 3.9% in June compared to May, according to a newly established Internet Advertising Index from Nielsen//NetRatings.

The Index, announced today by Nielsen Media Research and NetRatings, Inc., provides Internet researchers and analysts with a new tool for tracking changes in Internet advertising activity over time. The Index compares changes each month in the number of Internet advertisements successfully loaded on Web pages visited by Nielsen//NetRatings home panelists. As a result of the changes between May and June, the Internet Advertising Index stands at 103.9 for June, 1999.

The heads of the Advertising Research Foundation (ARF) and Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB) view the new Internet Advertising Index as a valuable tool for tracking the growth and development of Internet advertising. Both organizations are working to promote standards for Internet advertising and measurement.

"This new index is the kind of reliable tool the industry needs to track the development of the Internet as an advertising and communications medium," said Jim Spaeth, president/CEO of the ARF. The ARF is a nonprofit professional organization whose mission is to improve the practice of advertising, marketing and media research.

"While still in its infancy, the Internet has already established itself as a big-league advertising medium," says Rich LeFurgy, chairman of the IAB. "The new Internet Advertising Index is a shorthand method for helping media professionals gauge the growth of Internet advertising. Data on the top advertisers and Web sites provide additional information to help people quickly grasp top-line Internet advertising trends." The IAB is a nonprofit association dedicated to maximizing the use and effectiveness of advertising on the Internet.

"We intend to continue to bring tools such as the Index to the industry to help advertisers, agencies, sites and providers understand Internet trends and make more informed business decisions about the Internet," said Manish Bhatia, vice president of interactive services for Nielsen Media Research.

In addition to reporting the new index, Nielsen//NetRatings also announced data on the Top Ten Advertisers (Table 1) and Top Ten Domains, which are Web sites or pages that share a common name, such as Yahoo.com (Table 2). Based on June data, the top ten advertisers accounted for 28.1% of Nielsen//NetRatings -measured Internet advertising. In May, the top ten advertisers accounted for 29.3% of measured Internet advertising. Microsoft was the leading advertiser in June, accounting for 9.0% of such advertising impressions.

The top ten domains accounted for 55.7% of ad impressions measured by Nielsen//NetRatings in June. In May, the top ten domains accounted for 55.8% of such ad impressions. Yahoo.com was the leading domain, delivering 25.4% of the ad impressions. Yahoo.com's total was more than the total of the next six domains combined. Hotmail.com ranked second, delivering 9.0% of impressions.

Top Ten Advertisers

Three advertisers -- TRUSTe, 911Gifts, and Discover Brokerage -- joined the ranks of the top ten advertisers in June. The companies ranked fourth, seventh and tenth, respectively. The previous month, these companies ranked 25th, 173rd, and 13th, respectively. Microsoft and Amazon.com were the top two advertisers on the Web in both May and June. -0-

Table 1: Nielsen//NetRatings: Top Advertisers -- June 1999
----------------------------------------------------------
 Advertiser                 Share of Impressions (percent of total)
-------------------------   --------------------------------------
1. Microsoft                                  9.0

2. Amazon.com                                 3.8

3. CDNow                                      2.3

4. TRUSTe                                     2.1

5. LinkExchange                               2.0

6. America OnLine                             1.9

7. 911Gifts                                   1.9

8. Ad Council                                 1.8

9. First USA                                  1.8

10. Discover Brokerage                        1.5
-------------------------        -------------------
       Total Top Ten                         28.1

Note: Nielsen//NetRatings tracks banner and button advertisements
successfully loaded on panelists' computers. Only ads delivered to 40
people or more are counted in the totals.

Top Ten Advertising Domains

Hotbot.com moved onto the list of the top domains, and was ranked in seventh place for the month of June. Hotbot.com, which had been 11th in May, replaced AltaVista on the top ten list. AltaVista, which had been the ninth-ranked domain in May, ranked 11th in June. -0-

Table 2: Nielsen//NetRatings Top Advertising Domains -- June, 1999
------------------------------------------------------------------
 Domains                    Share of Impressions (percent of total)
-------------------------   ---------------------------------------
1. yahoo.com                                 25.4

2. hotmail.com                                9.0

3. ebay.com                                   4.3

4. aol.com                                    4.1

5. netscape.com                               2.9

6. msn.com                                    2.6

7. hotbot.com                                 2.2

8. excite.com                                 1.9

9. go.com                                     1.8

10.infospace.com                              1.5
-------------------------           ---------------
       Total Top Ten                         55.7

Note: Nielsen//NetRatings tracks banner and button advertisements
successfully loaded on panelists' computers. Only ads delivered to 40
people or more are counted in the totals.