Auto Manufacturers Continue to Advertise SUVs Online over More Fuel-Efficient Models, according to Comscore Ad Metrix

Ford Motor Company Ranks as Top Automotive Advertiser Online Reaching One-Third of U.S. Online Audience

Reston, VA, March 25, 2009 – Comscore, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCOR), a leader in measuring the digital world, today released the results of a study of online automotive advertising, based on data from the Comscore Ad Metrix service, including the debut release of data from Comscore’s new product-level dictionary.

The study revealed that Ford Motor Company was the top auto advertiser in January with 481 million display ad impressions, followed by Toyota with 384 million and General Motors with 316 million. The top ten auto manufacturers accounted for 58 percent of the 1.9 billion ad impressions in the segment, with the “Big Three” U.S. automakers (Ford, GM and Chrysler) accounting for 26 percent.

Top Advertisers among Auto Manufacturers by Total Display Ad Impressions
January 2009
Total U.S. – Home/Work/University Locations
Source: Comscore Ad Metrix

Total Display Ad Impressions (000)

Share of Auto Ad Impressions

Advertising Exposed Unique Persons (000)

Advertising Exposed Reach (% of Internet Users)

Auto Manufacturers

1,949,570

100.0%

120,135

65.1%

Ford Motor Company

480,734

14.7%

59,829

32.4%

Toyota

384,166

11.7%

45,874

24.9%

General Motors

316,493

9.7%

44,438

24.1%

Mercedes-Benz

265,063

8.1%

37,284

20.2%

Honda

163,387

5.0%

28,020

15.2%

Nissan

126,773

3.9%

21,064

11.4%

Hyundai Motors Inc.

55,773

1.7%

6,317

3.4%

Volkswagen

46,407

1.4%

13,125

7.1%

BMW

28,273

0.9%

4,776

2.6%

Chrysler LLC

23,793

0.7%

6,608

3.6%

Automotive advertisers delivered nearly 2 billion ad impressions and reached 120 million people, or 65 percent of the total Internet audience, in January 2009. This represents a decline of 43 percent in online ad impressions for the auto industry versus January 2008.

GMC Yukon the Most Advertised SUV Online, Chevy Malibu Tops among “Green” Models

As part of the study, Comscore identified the most advertised SUV and Fuel Efficient/Hybrid vehicles using the new Comscore Ad Metrix product dictionary, which allows an identification of online advertisements at the product level. Interestingly, the auto companies delivered six times more display ads for SUVs (65.0 million) than Fuel-Efficient/Hybrid models (9.9 million) in January 2009. The most advertised SUV model online was the GMC Yukon, with 22 million ad impressions, followed by the KIA Borrego (10.3 million) and Toyota Sequoia (8.5 million).

Top SUV Models Advertised Online by Total Display Ads
January 2009
Total U.S. – Home/Work/University Locations
Source: Comscore Ad Metrix

Total Display Ad Impressions (000)

Advertising Exposed Unique Persons (000)

Advertising Exposed Reach (% of Internet Users)

Average Frequency (No. of Ad Impressions per Person)

Total SUVs

64,951

16,997

9.2%

3.8

GMC Yukon

21,986

8,124

4.4%

2.7

KIA Borrego

10,315

2,133

1.2%

4.8

Toyota Sequoia

8,498

1,705

0.9%

5.0

Toyota Highlander

4,104

1,321

0.7%

3.1

Ford Flex

4,050

1,318

0.4%

3.1

Meanwhile, the top “green” model advertised online was the Chevy Malibu, which received 1.4 million ad impressions promoting its fuel-efficiency or hybrid model, followed by the Lexus LS Hybrid (1.2 million) and Lexus RX Hybrid (1.0 million).

Top Fuel-Efficient/Hybrid Models Advertised Online by Total Display Ads
January 2009
Total U.S. – Home/Work/University Locations
Source: Comscore Ad Metrix

Total Display Ad Impressions (000)

Advertising Exposed Unique Persons (000)

Advertising Exposed Reach (% of Internet Users)

Average Frequency (No. of Ad Impressions per Person)

Total Fuel-Efficient/Hybrids

9,852

4,357

2.4%

2.7

Chevrolet Malibu

1,409

640

0.3%

2.2

Lexus LS

1,239

607

0.3%

2.0

Honda Civic

1,180

423

0.2%

2.8

Toyota Prius

1,077

314

0.2%

3.4

Lexus RX

1,046

579

0.3%

1.8

“The collective online advertising strategy of automakers shows a low level of online advertising for their green models and higher levels for their heavier gas consumption vehicles,” said Jeff Hackett, Comscore senior vice president. “While SUVs may still drive a larger share of sales for the automakers, Comscore research has shown that online is an effective brand-building medium and now might be a good time to begin shifting allocation of dollars and mindshare towards the models of the future.”

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

Press
Bill Daddi
Daddi Brand Communications
646-370-1341
press@comscore.com