OPA Releases First U.S. Market Spending Report for Paid Content
Posted on August 6, 2002
The Online Publishers Association announced the results of its first U.S. Market Spending Report for paid online content. The study, conducted by comScore Networks, determined that U.S. consumers spent $675 million for online content in 2001, a 92 percent increase over 2000 spending levels. Further, industry growth accelerated into the current year, as U.S. consumers spent $300 million for online content in the first quarter of 2002, a 155 percent increase over the same quarter last year.
Considering the large number of content providers that have added new fee-based content offerings over the past year the growth is not surprising. Still, the numbers do indicate some support among web surfers for paid content. The report found that just over 9% of web users paid for content in the first quarter of 2002, so there is still much room for growth in the paid content industry. The report also provided a list of the top 25 paid content revenue generating websites in 2001 (see below).
The OPA/comScore study found that spending in nearly all content categories grew more than 100 percent in the first quarter of 2002 versus the same quarter last year. In the first quarter of 2002, the top three categories -- Business Content, Entertainment and Personals/Dating -- accounted for 59 percent of all online content spending.
A sharp increase in the number of online content buyers was a primary driver of sales growth, the study indicated. 12.4 million U.S. consumers paid for online content in the first quarter of 2002, up 5.3 million from the same period last year. As a percent of the total Internet population, consumers of paid content increased from 5.3 percent in the first quarter of 2001 to 9.2 percent in the first quarter of 2002.
"These data clearly show a market undergoing rapid growth. As content providers get smarter about creating valuable for-pay offerings, an increasing number of consumers are responding with their wallets," said Michael Zimbalist, executive director of the Online Publishers Association. "With this report and through regular updates, the OPA hopes to add clarity to the increasingly important role of paid content in online publishing."
The information contained in the report is based on observed purchases of content. Using its representative panel of more than 1 million online consumers, comScore Networks calculated the results by electronically monitoring the actual purchase and usage transactions that took place during the analysis period.
Highlights of the OPA Paid Content U.S. Market Spending Report:
- Majority of Spending on a Minority of Sites -- According to the research, 1,700 sites are estimated to be to charging for content online, with 85% of money spent by U.S. consumers for online content going to the top 50 of those sites. (See below for top 25 ranking.)
- Individual Spending on the Rise -- Average spending per consumer increased 46 percent in the first quarter of 2002 compared to the same period last year.
- Subscriptions Dominate -- Subscriptions are the dominant pricing model, accounting for 85 percent of paid content sales in 2001. Single purchases accounted for only 15 percent of sales.
- Renewal Rates Online are Strong -- Renewal rates for annual subscriptions averaged 72%. 74% of those who subscribed for monthly payments were still visiting fee-restricted content areas 12 months later.