Visitation to French Online Careers Sites Soars in Wake of Global Recession

11.5 Million Visitors to Careers Sites in May 2009, Up 45 Percent vs. Year Ago

Pole-emploi.fr is France’s Most Popular Careers Site with 3.9 Million Visitors

LONDON, U.K., July 15, 2009 – Comscore, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCOR), a leader in measuring the digital world, today released a study of trends in usage of French online career services sites, based on data from the Comscore World Metrix audience measurement service. A total of 11.5 million French Internet users accessed a careers services and development site in May 2009, up 45 percent versus year ago, presumably driven in large part by the effects of the global financial crisis.

Pole-emploi.fr is France’s Most Visited Careers Site

Of the total 11.5 million French Internet users who visited a careers site in May 2009, 33.5 percent visited Pole-emploi.fr. The government-owned careers agency grew 63 percent versus year ago to 3.9 million visitors, making it France’s most popular careers property in May. Groupe Vocatis ranked second with 1.3 million visitors, followed by Trovit France Jobs (1.1 million visitors) and Keljob Sites (1 million visitors).

Top 10 Career Services and Development sites Ranked by Total French Unique Visitors (000)
May 2009 vs. May 2008
Total France – Age 15+, Home & Work Locations*
Source: Comscore World Metrix

Property

May-08

May-09

% Change

Total French Internet Audience

31,066

36,949

19%

Career Services and Development

7,987

11,549

45%

Pole-emploi.fr**

2,371

3,864

63%

Groupe Vocatis

1,246

1,309

5%

Trovit France Jobs

288

1,099

281%

Keljob Sites

782

1,017

30%

CareerBuilder LLC***

48

978

1,944%

Juritravail.com

526

964

83%

Monster

884

870

-2%

Ouestfrance-emploi.com

N/A

815

N/A

APEC.fr

441

711

61%

Regionsjob.com

304

694

128%

*Excludes Internet activity from public computers such as Internet cafes or access from mobile phones or PDAs.**As of May 2009 includes traffic from ANPE Sites.
***Growth driven in part by several URL additions.

“The effects of the global financial crisis have resulted in millions of new people on the job market and many of those who remain employed are preparing for the worst,” said Delphine Gatignol, Comscore Business Development Manager for France. “Career sites represent an invaluable resource during these times, putting opportunities in front of job seekers or providing helpful tips for surviving the downturn. As the economy in France eventually recovers and employment levels bounce back, we can expect that career sites will have played a vital role.”

Careers Category Climbs as Economy Worsens

Prior to the onset of the global financial crisis, traffic to the careers category remained fairly flat in France, and actually dipped to its lowest point of the past year in August 2008 with a total 6.7 million visitors during the month. However, following the stock-market turmoil and the media frenzy that ensued, visitation jumped 37 percent in September to 9.2 million visitors – the highest monthly increase during the past year. Traffic dipped again slightly to 9.7 million visitors in December as workers settled in for the winter and turned their attention to the Christmas season. With the beginning of 2009 seeing the biggest stock market declines since 2001, visitation to careers sites quickly rose again in January and climbed to its highest point of 12.6 million in April, following the nationwide labor strikes the month prior..

Total Unique Visitors to the Career Services & Development Category*
May 2008 – May 2009
Total France – Age 15+, Home & Work Locations*
Source: Comscore World Metrix

Month

Total Unique Visitors (000)

Average Pages per Visitor

Timeline of Events

May-2008

7,987

69

Jun-2008

7,783

69

Jul-2008

7,430

65

Aug-2008

6,728

57

U.K. warns it could be facing its worst economic crisis for 60 years

Sep-2008

9,184

77

Market turmoil, U.S. Federal Reserve cuts interest rate

Oct-2008

10,141

86

European leaders meet at first ever financial summit in Paris

Nov-2008

10,189

78

European commission unveils €200bn stimulus package

Dec-2008

9,682

62

U.S. outlines plans to help more than a million homeowners

Jan-2009

11,045

77

Global stock markets, including London's FTSE 100 index, suffer their biggest declines since September 11th 2001

Feb-2009

11,598

73

French government unveils €24bn stimulus package

Mar-2009

12,546

78

Nation-wide strikes in France against rising unemployment

Apr-2009

12,612

69

Germany reveals plans for its first nationalisation of a bank in the post war era

May-2009

11,549

62

World Bank President Robert Zoellick reveals the global economy may return to growth by late 2009 or in 2010.

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

About Comscore
Comscore, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCOR) is a global leader in measuring the digital world. For more information, please visit www.comscore.com/companyinfo

Ayaan Mohamud
Comscore, Inc.
+ 44 (0) 207-099-1775
worldpress@comscore.com