TOKYO, Aug 27, 2008 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX News Network/ -- comScore, Inc. (Nasdaq: SCOR), a leader in measuring the digital world, today released its June 2008 rankings of the largest and fastest-growing Internet properties and site categories in Japan, based on data from the comScore World Metrix audience measurement service. The summer season prompted gains to health, career, and leisure sites, while the anticipated release of the Apple iPhone 3G generated increased activity in the technology news sector.

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"The July 11 launch of the Apple iPhone 3G, the first release of the iPhone in the Japanese market, was met with much anticipation and enthusiasm," said Maru Sato, managing director of comScore Japan. "Consumers seeking news and information on the iPhone caused a flurry of activity on technology news sites and at SoftBank.jp, the exclusive phone carrier of the iPhone in Japan."

Top Gaining Site Categories for June 2008

The health - information category ranked as the top-gaining site category in June, as visitors sought ways to combat the summer heat, allergies and other seasonal health topics. The number of visitors to the category jumped 18 percent to 5.6 million visitors.

To ease the effect of rising gasoline prices, many people in Japan sought summer leisure activities close to home and within their budgets, prompting a 16-percent gain in the retail - movies category to 6.3 million visitors. The career services and development category also witnessed a 16-percent increase, to nearly 12 million visitors, as young people turned to the Internet seeking summer employment.

    Top Gaining Site Categories by Number of Unique Japanese Visitors
    June 2008 vs. May 2008
    Total Japan, Age 15+ - Home and Work Locations*
    Source: comScore World Metrix
                                            Total Unique Visitors (000)
    Site Category                   May-2008        Jun-2008      % Change
    Total Internet :
     Total Audience                  55,705          56,220             1
    Health - Information              4,750           5,623            18
    Financial Information/Advice      4,222           4,918            16
    Retail - Movies                   5,412           6,295            16
    Career Services and
     Development                     10,203          11,818            16
    Business to Business              2,528           2,893            14

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

Top Gaining Properties for June 2008

Adobe Sites led the top-gaining properties ranking for June with a 22-percent increase to 6.8 million visitors, driven by the release of the Acrobat 9 upgrade. The anticipated launch of the Apple iPhone 3G in July prompted gains to several properties, including technology news sites, ITMedia.co.jp (up 20 percent to 4 million visitors) and CNET Networks (up 9 percent to nearly 3 million visitors). SoftBank.jp, the official mobile phone carrier of the iPhone, jumped 15 percent to 2.7 million visitors.

    Top 10 Gaining Properties by Number of Japanese Unique Visitors*
    June 2008 vs. May 2008
    Total Japan, Age 15+ - Home and Work Locations**
    Source: comScore World Metrix
                                          Total Unique Visitors (000)
    Property                        May-2008        Jun-2008      % Change
    Total Internet :
     Total Audience                  55,705          56,220             1
    Adobe Sites                       5,619           6,842            22
    ITMEDIA.CO.JP                     3,358           4,024            20
    FRESHEYE.COM                      3,317           3,940            19
    SOFTBANK.JP                       2,325           2,679            15
    YOMIURI.CO.JP                     4,567           5,251            15
    Lycos Sites                       2,228           2,511            13
    TBS.CO.JP                         4,205           4,733            13
    Japan Airlines                    2,286           2,537            11
    CNET Networks                     2,716           2,948             9
    IZA.NE.JP                         6,507           7,061             9

    *  Ranking based on the top 100 Japanese properties in June 2008.
    ** Excludes traffic from public computers such as Internet cafes or access
       from mobile phones or PDAs.

Top 10 Properties for June 2008

Yahoo! Sites maintained its strong #1 position in the Japanese market with more than 46 million visitors in June, an increase of 2 percent from May. Google Sites captured the #2 spot with nearly 36 million visitors, followed by Rakuten Inc. with 30.8 million visitors.

    Top 10 Properties by Number of Japanese Unique Visitors
    June 2008 vs. May 2008
    Total Japan, Age 15+ - Home and Work Locations*
    Source: comScore World Metrix
                                          Total Unique Visitors (000)
    Property                        May-2008        Jun-2008      % Change
    Total Internet :
     Total Audience                  55,705          56,220             1
    Yahoo! Sites                     45,039          46,103             2
    Google Sites                     35,616          35,851             1
    Rakuten Inc                      30,433          30,800             1
    FC2 inc.                         28,297          28,653             1
    Microsoft Sites                  28,797          28,593            -1
    NTT Group                        27,987          27,843            -1
    GMO Internet Group               24,138          24,159             0
    Livedoor                         22,832          23,217             2
    Wikipedia Sites                  22,338          22,591             1
    Nifty Corporation                23,641          22,474            -5

    *  Excludes traffic 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 and the preferred source of digital marketing intelligence. For more information, please visit http://www.comscore.com/boilerplate

SOURCE comScore, Inc.

http://www.comscore.com

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