New York, NY, April 25, 2006--Nielsen//NetRatings announced that year over year, searches on Google and Yahoo! grew 41 percent and 47 percent, respectively, outpacing the overall search growth rate of 36 percent.
Google’s searches increased from 2.1 billion in March 2005 to 2.9 billion in March 2006, while in the same time period Yahoo’s searches increased from 907.8 million to 1.3 billion. The No. 3 search provider, MSN, saw a 9 percent year-over-year growth in searches, from 592.2 million to 643.8 million.
In March, Google and Yahoo! also gained search market share, increasing two percentage points and one percentage point year over year, respectively. Google now accounts for 49 percent of all searches, Yahoo! 22 percent. MSN’s share dropped slightly, from 14 to 11 percent.
“As the recognized leaders in the search market, Google and Yahoo! continue to gain ground as new features, such as instant search suggestions and video search, heighten loyalty among their users” said Michael Lanz, vice president, search industry solutions, Nielsen//NetRatings. “To compete, other search providers must be equally innovative and build consumer trust in their search results,” he continued.
