REDMOND, Wash., June 16, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The MSNBC Digital Network (msnbc.com) experienced record-breaking traffic for the past twelve months, with May marking a full year of dominance in the online news space. Msnbc.com consistently beat Yahoo! News and the CNN Digital Network (CNN.com) in unique visitors from June 2008 through May 2009 making it the #1 Current Events and Global News Site according to Nielsen Online. Msnbc.com's average monthly total of unique visitors also outpaced (by more than 3.3 million monthly visitors per month) the combined total of Fox News Digital Network (FoxNews.com), the ABCNEWS Digital Network (ABCNews.com) and the CBS News Digital Network (CBSNews.com).*
"This has been a landmark year. Our compelling content and innovative presentation of news through our exclusive video player, interactive features and original journalism continues to attract millions of consumers who return to the site again and again," said Charlie Tillinghast, president of msnbc.com. "Our family of brands offers consumers everything from the day's headlines and breaking news to the best in politics, sports, and lifestyle features."
"The success of msnbc.com is the result of a remarkable collaborative effort by some of the most innovative journalists in the business," said NBC News President Steve Capus. "These extraordinary numbers prove that if you provide your audience with quality journalism, offer it in a compelling, easy to use way and make it timely and accessible, they will respond. I want to congratulate everyone, both here in New York and out in Redmond, on this terrific achievement. We can all take great pride in our organization's unique ability to do what no one else can."
Msnbc.com is the exclusive news provider for MSN and is powered by NBC News' award-winning video. As the exclusive online channel for NBC News, msnbc.com features America's top-rated newscasts including "NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams," America's number-one evening newscast, "TODAY," the number-one morning news program, and "Meet the Press," most-watched Sunday morning public affairs program for the first quarter of 2009. Msnbc.com also features compelling programming from "NBC Sports," "Dateline" and MSNBC TV.
Nightly.msnbc.com, the online home for "Nightly News with Brian Williams," continued its strong performance with video streams increasing by 24% from January through May, 2009 versus that same time period in 2008.** In May, TODAYshow.com had its biggest month ever, nearly topping the 8 million unique visitors mark for the first time.* "Meet the Press with David Gregory," available at MTP.msnbc.com, saw online video streams increase 31% from January through May, 2009 versus that same time period in 2008.** NBCSports.com is also coming off of its best month ever for May, setting records for both page views and videos streamed.
MSNBC TV had its best year ever in 2008 and was the fastest growing network in all of television. Traffic to the redesigned "Countdown" (Countdown.msnbc.com), "The Rachel Maddow Show" (Rachel.msnbc.com), "Hardball" (Hardball.msnbc.com) and "Morning Joe" (Joe.msnbc.com) websites have all experienced skyrocketing growth in online video streams since January 2009.
In May, the MSNBC Digital Network (msnbc.com) attracted more than 37.2 million unique visitors as consumers turned to the site for a fuller spectrum of news including expansive coverage of the economy, world news, the latest sports reports and entertainment features.* Msnbc.com has averaged 40 million monthly unique visitors throughout the year according to Nielsen Online.
The MSNBC Digital Network (msnbc.com) Highlights:
* In May, msnbc.com had 37.2 million unique visitors: an 8% lead over CNN.com (34.4 million) and a 4% lead over Yahoo! News (35.8 million).* * Msnbc.com's year-over-year increase in unique visitors in May was 6%, while CNN.com experienced a 4% increase and Yahoo! News was flat.* * Msnbc.com had more than 40 million unique visitors in 8 of the past 12 months (June 2008-May 2009).* * In the past 12 months, msnbc.com averaged more than 112 million video streams per month (June 2008-May 2009).**
About msnbc.com
Msnbc.com delivers a fuller spectrum of news. Drawing on its award-winning original journalism, NBC News heritage, trusted sources and Microsoft's advanced technologies, the site presents compelling, diverse and visually engaging stories on the consumer's platform of choice. Based in Redmond, WA, msnbc.com is a joint venture of Microsoft (Nasdaq:MSFT) and NBC Universal (NYSE:GE).
*Source: Nielsen Netview
**Source: Omniture SiteCatalyst