J.D. Power and Associates Reports: Residential Internet Subscribers Maintain Lengthy Relationships with Web Mail Providers; Yahoo! Mail, Yahoo! Messenger and Google Rank Highest among Providers of Online Services

Business Wire, Oct 12, 2005

WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif. -- As e-mail addresses become an increasingly important personal contact point, residential Internet service subscribers are maintaining lengthy relationships with their primary Web mail providers, according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2005 Residential Online Service Customer Satisfaction Study(SM) released today.

Forty-three percent of Internet service subscribers use Web as their primary e-mail account, compared to 57 percent who access e-mail through their primary Internet service provider (ISP) using e-mail software installed on the user's computer. Web mail is defined as e-mail service, often provided for free, that allows access to mail through a Web browser. The study finds that 73 percent of residential ISP subscribers report the length of time they have been with their Web mail provider exceeds three years. Additionally, 35 percent of these subscribers say their relationship has existed for six years or more.

"E-mail addresses are emerging as the phone number of the new millennium, with Internet users increasingly valuing continuity in their e-mail contact information," said Jonathan Brookner, director of telecommunication research at J.D. Power and Associates. "Since Web mail addresses typically stay with you regardless of who your Internet service provider is, users are maintaining their relationships with Web mail providers for long periods of time."

The study, now in its second year, is part of J.D. Power and Associates' on-going coverage of trends and customer satisfaction with the Internet. The study examines the consumer behavior, experiences and satisfaction of Internet service subscribers with the most frequently used online services, including instant messaging, Web mail services and search engines/functions.

Yahoo! Mail ranks highest in customer satisfaction among primary Web mail providers, receiving the highest ratings from users in all three factors contributing to overall satisfaction: ease of use, performance and reliability and features. The study finds that 91 percent of Web mail users say they check for messages at least once a day.

Yahoo! Messenger ranks highest among primary instant messaging (IM) services, leading the segment in the three factors contributing to customer satisfaction: security, performance and reliability and features. Thirty-five percent of IM users report sending and receiving messages on a daily basis, and only 6 percent say they "definitely" or "probably" would switch IM providers in the next six months.

Google ranks highest in satisfying Internet users with primary search engines/functions, receiving top ratings from users in all three customer satisfaction factors: functionality, ease of use and results. The study finds that 43 percent of all respondents rely on Google as their primary search engine. This increases to 53 percent among those with high-speed Internet connections.

The 2005 Residential Online Service Customer Satisfaction Study is based on responses from 6,313 residential customers of Internet service providers nationwide.

About J.D. Power and Associates

Headquartered in Westlake Village, Calif., J.D. Power and Associates is an ISO 9001-registered global marketing information services firm operating in key business sectors including market research, forecasting, consulting, training and customer satisfaction. The firm's quality and satisfaction measurements are based on responses from millions of consumers annually. J.D. Power and Associates is a business unit of The McGraw-Hill Companies.

About The McGraw-Hill Companies

Founded in 1888, The McGraw-Hill Companies is a leading global information services provider meeting worldwide needs in the financial services, education and business information markets through leading brands such as Standard & Poor's, McGraw-Hill Education and BusinessWeek. The Corporation has more than 300 offices in 40 countries. Sales in 2004 were $5.3 billion. Additional information is available at http://www.mcgraw-hill.com.

No advertising or other promotional use can be made of the information in this release without the express prior written consent of J.D. Power and Associates. www.jdpower.com.