RESTON, Va., July 9, 2008 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX News Network/ -- comScore, Inc. (Nasdaq: SCOR), a leader in measuring the digital world, today released an overview of activity at the financial news & research site category, which attracted more than 64 million U.S. visitors in May, an increase of 35 percent versus year ago.

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"Current economic conditions -- including rising gas prices, general inflation concerns, housing troubles and stock market uncertainty -- have Americans seeking to stay informed about the factors influencing their personal finances," said Jack Flanagan, comScore executive vice president. "As a result, the financial news and research category has grown substantially during the past year, with strong visitor gains occurring at most sites, including above average gains at category leaders Yahoo! Finance and AOL Money & Finance."

    Top Financial News & Research Sites
    May 2008 vs. May 2007
    Total U.S. - Home/Work/University Locations
    Source: comScore Media Metrix
                                                 Total Unique Visitors (000)
                                               May-07      May-08     % Change
    Total Internet: Total Audience            177,487     190,858          8
    Financial News & Research                  47,493      64,287         35
    Yahoo! Finance                             11,740      18,492         58
    AOL Money & Finance                        10,266      15,222         48
    MSN Money                                  12,087      13,707         13
    Forbes Property                             5,497       7,014         28
    Dow Jones & Company                         5,177       6,613         28
    CNN Money                                   5,242       6,040         15
    BNET                                          166       5,563      3,261
    TheStreet.com Sites                         1,749       5,289        202
    Reuters Sites                               3,286       4,795         46
    Reed Business Information                   2,436       3,872         59

Yahoo! Finance led the category in May with 18.5 million visitors, up 58 percent versus year ago, followed by AOL Money & Finance with 15.2 million visitors (up 48 percent) and MSN Money with 13.7 million visitors (up 13 percent). CNET-owned business site BNET, which ranked seventh in the category with 5.6 million visitors, grew more than 3,000 percent versus last year due to the acquisition of FindArticles.com, while eighth-ranked TheStreet.com Sites tripled to 5.3 million visitors, also due in part to site acquisitions.

Category Growth Varies by Demographic

Though the category displayed visitor growth across virtually all demographic segments, certain segments contributed more than others. The number of visitors to the category age 50 and older grew 46 percent versus year ago, while visitors under 50 grew by 32 percent. Above average growth was also seen in the following segments: households earning at least $60,000 annually (40 percent), households with children (38 percent) and households with at least 5 people (57 percent). In sum, segments displaying the greatest growth paint a picture of those likely to have more financial responsibilities or challenges, such as needing to save for college and/or retirement, or needing to determine how best to handle more immediate financial obligations, such as home mortgage holders facing rapidly escalating monthly payments.

    Demographic Shifts in Financial News & Research Category
    May 2008 vs. May 2007
    Total U.S. - Home/Work/University Locations
    Source: comScore Media Metrix

                                                    Unique Visitors (000)
       Financial News & Research Category      May-07      May-08      Percent
                                                                        Change
    Total Audience                             47,493      64,287         35%
    Age
        Persons Under 50                       35,222      46,405         32%
        Persons 50+                            12,271      17,882         46%
    HH Income (US)
        Under $60K                             20,233      26,155         29%
        $60K+                                  27,260      38,132         40%
    Children in Household
        Children: No                           20,216      26,745         32%
        Children: Yes                          27,277      37,542         38%
    Household Size
        HH Size: 1-4 Persons                   38,319      49,848         30%
        HH Size: 5+ Persons                     9,174      14,439         57%

About comScore

comScore, Inc. (Nasdaq: SCOR) is a global leader in measuring the digital world. For more information, please visit http:www.comscore.com/boilerplate.

SOURCE comScore, Inc.

http://www.comscore.com

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