Nielsen//NetRatings Service Launches Brazil’s First Major Internet Advertising and Audience Tracking Data

Sao Paulo, Brazil, October 30 – Nielsen//NetRatings, the world’s fastest growing Internet audience measurement service, has released inaugural findings of home Internet usage in Brazil.  With the addition of Brazilian data, the Nielsen//NetRatings service now collects and reports real-time data from more than 190,000 Internet users in 17 countries.

The Brazilian data represents the deepest detailing in the country to-date of Internet user profiles and behaviors.   The research was carried out by IBOPE eRatings.com, which also measured the performance of advertising banners.

“The Internet is the first truly global medium and our findings show Brazil as a market with boundless potential,” said Tolis Vossos, CEO of IBOPE eRatings.com.  “Our data is a highly reliable tool that will play a key role in the market’s understanding of the Brazilian Internet user, and how they compare to the Interest users around the world.”

The Brazilian research found that from a total Internet universe in Brazil of 9.8 million in September, 5.1 million people accessed the Internet, with the majority of users, 58 percent, being males. Just more than half of users, 55 percent, are older than age 25.  Professionals, executives, managers, technicians and self-employed workers were the heaviest users.

During September, Brazilians logged on an average of 13 times, spending on average eight hours and five minutes each month browsing the Internet.  This compares to browsing times of nine hours and 35 minutes during September in the United States, six hours and thirty eight minutes in Australia and four hours and forty five minutes in the United Kingdom.

During September, UOL was the Property recording the highest audience in Brazil, reaching 66 percent of the active Internet population, followed by the Starmedia Network and Yahoo!.

Table 1. Nielsen//NetRatings Top 10 Properties in Brazil, at home  – September 2000

Audience Ranking	Property	Audience (millions)	Reach (%) – Active Universe
1	UOL	3.4	66.44%
2	Starmedia Network	2.4	48.06%
3	Yahoo!	2.1	41.91%
4	Brasil Online	2.0	39.54%
5	Nutec Informatica	1.8	35.61%
6	IG	1.8	34.75%
7	MSN	1.6	31.14%
8	AOL Websites	1.5	29.39%
9	CJB Management	1.3	26.02%
10	Microsoft	1.3	25.64%

In comparison to other countries with Nielsen//NetRatings data, it was found that Brazil Internet users were largely consistent with their global peers in several categories.   Search engines and portals are the category most often accessed in Brazil, as it is in the United States, Australia and United Kingdom.  In access time per person, the Finance/ Insurance/Investment category led in Brazil and the other countries.

The research also provided information about Internet adverstising, showing that in many cases, Brazilians are staying close to home by clicking on local ad banners.

Table 2.  Nielsen//NetRatings Top 10 Banner Impressions, Brazil, September 2000. 

Nielsen//NetRatings uses unique technology capable of measuring both Internet use and advertising to provide the most timely, accurate and comprehensive Internet usage data and advertising information in the global marketplace.  Nielsen//NetRatings tracks the entire spectrum of Internet user behavior, leveraging proprietary data-collection technology from NetRatings, Nielsen Media Research's 50 years of expertise in research and audience measurement, and ACNielsen’s international leadership in offering market research information covering more than 100 countries.

About ACNielsen eRatings.com and IPOBE eRatings.com
ACNielsen eRatings.com is a venture between ACNielsen (NYSE: ART) and NetRatings Inc. (Nasdaq: NTRT). IBOPE eRatings.com is a joint venture between the IBOPE Group and ACNielsen eRatings.com, to offer the Nielsen//NetRatings service throughout Latin America.  ACNielsen is the world's leading market research firm, offering measurement and analysis of marketplace dynamics, consumer attitudes and behavior, and new and traditional media in more than 100 countries, and NetRatings is the leading provider of Internet audience measurement technology and analysis.  Through the Nielsen//NetRatings service, ACNielsen eRatings.com is creating the first global service for tracking audiences, advertising and user activity on the Internet and will be reporting in more than 30 countries worldwide by the end of 2001.  

About NetRatings, Inc.
NetRatings (Nasdaq: NTRT) provides Internet audience measurement and analysis services that enable its customers to make informed decisions regarding their Internet strategies.  NetRatings delivers accurate and timely information collected from a representative sample of Internet users and augments it with detailed, flexible reporting and in-depth analyses. 

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Forward Looking Statements:  Certain statements contained herein are forward looking.  These may be identified by the use of forward-looking words or phrases such as "anticipate," "believe," "expect," "could," "should," "plan," "estimated," "potential," "target," "aim" and "goal," among others.  In connection with the "safe-harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, ACNielsen and NetRatings are hereby identifying important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking statements made regarding the venture.  Any such statement is qualified by reference to the following cautionary statement.

Risks and uncertainties that may affect the operations, performance, development and results of the venture's business include: (i) the likely incurrence of significant losses by the venture while its business is being developed and the difficulty of forecasting future revenues and costs;(ii) the risk that a competing company's Internet audience measurement service will become the accepted standard for Internet audience measurement; (iii) the ability to successfully develop, promote and maintain the Nielsen//NetRatings brand; (iv) the effects on demand for the venture's products and services if the use of the Internet does not continue to grow; (v) the effect that governmental regulation of the Internet could have on the growth of the Internet; (vi) the ability to successfully respond to rapid technological change, including the uncertainties surrounding the emergence of new Internet access devices; (vii) the risks associated with international development of the Internet ratings service, including effecting necessary changes to the existing software to accommodate language and other differences in the jurisdictions in which the venture will operate and the effect of laws and regulatory requirements in such jurisdictions; (viii) the risks involved in collecting personal information from panelists, including the effect of privacy laws in the jurisdictions in which the venture will operate; (ix) the impact of foreign exchange rate fluctuations since so much of the venture's earnings will be generated abroad; (x) the risk of technical difficulties or service interruptions and the lack of a backup facility in the event of a systems failure at NetRatings' computer operations center in San Jose, California; and (xi) the uncertainties of litigation, including the IRI lawsuit against ACNielsen; as well as other risks and uncertainties that may be detailed from time to time in the Securities and Exchange Commission filings of the venture partners.

Developments in any of the areas referred to above could cause the results of the venture to differ from projected results.  ACNielsen and NetRatings caution that the foregoing list of important factors is not exclusive and they do not undertake to update any forward-looking statement that may be made from time-to-time regarding the venture.