With online media usage in SA having grown by 120% in the past two years, the call is to start looking beyond statistics and seeing who the real users are and using this information to build conversations with consumers and engage with them. The next few months also promise to be interesting with Nielsen//Netratings looking beyond page views and finding more effective ways of measuring online traffic. Here's some breaking news - the team from Nielsen//Netratings in the UK will be visiting SA shores in September and hosting open sessions to discuss advances in online measurement.

Watch this space......

New bill set to regulate interactive gambling

The department of trade and industry has tabled a bill that aims to regulate the interactive gambling industry in South Africa.

The National Gambling Amendment Bill, tabled by trade and industry minister Mandisi Mpahlwa, notes that the interactive gambling industry - or remote gambling taking place through the Internet or other related forms - is plagued by crime, little protection of players and uncontrolled exposure of children.

Beyond online usage stats
“Online media usage continues to show rapid growth – 120% in the past two years, but let's start looking beyond the statistics and see who the real users are and start using this information in a manner that benefits all, from business growth to daily conversations with consumers,” says Matthew Buckland, chairman of the Online Publishers Association (OPA), which this week released its latest online ratings through Nielsen/Netratings.

Internet second home for ‘silver surfers'

‘Silver surfers' are becoming the fastest growing demographic group, according to Online Publishers Association (OPA). “Eschewing their technophobic tendencies, and coaxed online by their grandchildren, over 65 year-old wired seniors are getting so hooked on the Internet that many of them consider cyberspace their second home,” says Matt Buckland of the OPA.

“Whether new to the web or aging Internet-loving baby-boomers, they are becoming avid online researchers, seeking information on every subject from theatre and travel reviews, hobby tips and weather reports to medical facts and financial data. Reading the news is also as important to this emerging stereotype, as maintaining family ties (via email) and managing their health.”

SA Internet shows little growth

Despite the massive growth in broadband connectivity in SA, the number of users with access to the Internet will only grow by 3% in 2007, says a new report by local research company World Wide Worx.

The study and market commentators agree Telkom's high cost of connectivity has caused this stagnation.

World Wide Worx's Internet Access in SA 2007 report predicts 3.85 million people in SA – a mere 8% of the population – will have access to the Internet by the end of 2007, says MD Arthur Goldstuck.

Online dating a hit amongst South African youth

Young South Africans have taken to online dating with fervour, according to Felix Erken, managing director of Junk Mail Publishing Group.

Love Mail has around 30,000 current users, of which 32 percent are online and mobile dating service users under the age of 25 - the highest percentage across a single age group. Of this, 34 percent are female and 29 percent male.

Around 22 percent of Love Mail users are between the ages of 25 and 29, compared with just 10 percent in the over 45 category.

What Matters Online? Content, of Course

Like Print or TV, Websites Must Capture Consumers' Attention With Beautiful Images. Too Bad That Concept Still Escapes Marketers

The internet is as important an invention as the printing press. It's in its infancy. It's unsettling. It's astounded us by reflecting back both our universality and our diversity.

Newspapers Lose Most Ad Dollars to the Web

NEW YORK Newspapers are losing the most ad dollars to the Internet compared to other media, according to a new report from Wachovia Equity Research.

Wachovia Senior Analyst John Janedis and his team analyzed 100 leading national advertisers to determine the shift away from traditional media to the Internet.

Web Rankings Shakeup: It's About Time

Nielsen//NetRatings, comScore's biggest rival in Web measurement, is weighing in. Its verdict? Page views count, but not much. On July 10, the company announced that it would focus on the amount of time spent on a site, rather than pages viewed, when discussing a Web property's ability to engage users. "Time spent is a better denominator than other things," says Scott Ross, director of product marketing at Nielsen//NetRatings.

Industry Reporting Standards and What Really Works

The missing variable in today's measurement and optimization philosophy is the "sphere of influence" effect. Here's why.

While cost-per-action (CPA) has become a popular way to avoid click fraud and determine marketing spends, the ultimate equation for online marketing success goes far beyond that straightforward metric. The missing variable in today's measurement, planning and optimization philosophy is the "sphere of influence" effect, the benefits associated with making contact with consumers across multiple websites and other media channels. The multiple-media touchpoint phenomenon has significant impact over consumers' behavior, and their ultimate purchasing decisions.

Click Fraud Goes Viral - Forbes

According to a report from the click fraud auditing group Click Forensics, the percentage of clicks on online ads that were fraudulent climbed to 15.8% in the second quarter of 2007, an increase of a full percentage point in just three months. And the volume of fraudulent clicks found on online content networks like Google Adsense and Yahoo Publisher Network is more disturbing: 25.6% of those clicks were bogus, compared with 21.9% at the end of last quarter, it said.

Women: Internet Is Indispensable

Women not only outnumber men online but also rely on the internet for the conduct of their daily lives - so much so, that two-thirds (66.1 percent) of online women say their lives would be disrupted if they were left without internet access for a week, according to a recent Burst Media survey, writes MarketingCharts.