French Language Interface Introduction Helps Facebook Surge into Top Position
LONDON, U.K. – comScore, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCOR), a leader in measuring the digital world, released the results of a study of social networking site usage in Europe, with a particular focus on France, based on data from the comScore World Metrix audience measurement service. The study showed that 22 million French Internet users visited at least one social networking site in December 2008, reaching 64 percent of the total French Internet audience.
Social Networking Attracts Three Quarters of European Internet Users
Of the 282.7 million European Internet users age 15 and older who went online via a home or work computer in December 2008, 211 million visited a social networking site – representing a penetration of 74.6 percent. Of the 16 individual European countries included in the study, social networking reach was relatively low in France, at 63.9 percent, compared with 79.8 percent in the U.K. or 73.7 percent in Spain. Despite its relatively low penetration, France’s social networking audience (21.7 million visitors in December) was the third largest in Europe behind the U.K. (29.3 million visitors) and Germany (24.9 million visitors).
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European Social Networking Reach by Country
Total Europe, Age 15+ – Home & Work Locations*
December 2008
Source: comScore World Metrix
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Country Total Unique Visitors (000) % Reach of Country’s
to Social Networking Total Internet
Category Audience
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Europe 210,950 74.6
United Kingdom 29,263 79.8
Spain 13,185 73.7
Portugal 2,705 72.9
Denmark 2,390 69.7
Italy 14,408 69.3
Belgium 3,668 68.2
Germany 24,901 67.3
Ireland 1,131 66.9
Finland 2,061 66.2
Sweden 3,733 65.4
Switzerland 2,804 64.7
France 21,745 63.9
Russia 18,427 63.5
Netherlands 7,438 63.0
Norway 1,732 58.9
Austria 2,120 49.7
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*Excludes traffic from public computers such as Internet cafes or access from mobile phones or PDAs.
Facebook Now the Most Popular Social Networking Site in France
More than 21.7 million French Internet users visited a social networking site in December 2008, up 45 percent versus the previous year. Facebook.com ranked as the most popular social networking site with 12 million visitors, growing 443 percent over the course of the past year after launching a French language user interface in February. Skyrock ranked second with 11 million visitors (up 8 percent), followed by another French site, L’internaute Copains d’Avant, which enjoyed impressive 112 percent growth throughout the year to reach 5.8 million visitors in December. MySpace Sites (3 million visitors) and Flickr.com (1.8 million visitors) rounded out the top five.
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A Selection of Leading Social Networking Sites
Ranked by Total French Unique Visitors (000)*
Total France, Age 15+ – Home & Work Locations
December 2008 vs. December 2007
Source: comScore World Metrix
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Property Dec-2007 Dec-2008 % Change
Total French Internet Audience 28,729 34,010 18%
Social Networking 14,984 21,745 45%
Facebook.com 2,211 11,996 443%
Skyrock 10,221 11,042 8%
Linternaute Copains d Avant 2,709 5,753 112%
MySpace Sites 2,597 2,994 15%
Flickr.com 824 1,809 120%
Trombi.com 1,144 1,456 27%
Hi5.com 528 980 86%
Netlog.com 738 920 25%
Viadeo 334 904 171%
Badoo.com 563 733 30%
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*Excludes traffic from public computers such as Internet cafes or access from mobile phones or PDAs.
“2008 was a significant year for social networking in France,” said Mike Read, SVP and Managing Director of comScore, Europe. “Not only was it a year that saw significant growth, but it was also a period in which Facebook took the category by storm after translating its interface into French early in the year. It will be interesting to see what happens in 2009 as Facebook and native social network, Skyrock, battle for the top position in the French market.”
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