comScore introduces Segment Metrix 2.0 for advanced audience segmentation capabilities

Segment Metrix 2.0 adds six industry-leading segmentation approaches from Kantar Shopcom, IXI (an Equifax Company), Infogroup, Bizo, and Catalist to the existing segmentation schemes available from comScore, Acxiom (PersonicX) and Claritas (PRIZM NE). Segment Metrix 2.0 will also feature the first third-party segmentation scheme to be made available to the United Kingdom from the Kantar Target Group Index (TGI).

"comScore is very pleased to announce the enhancements to our audience segmentation capabilities in Segment Metrix 2.0, which provides a significantly more powerful interface for analysing the online behaviours of Internet users across a variety of market segments," said Jeff Hackett, comScore executive vice president. "We're excited to be working with prominent industry partners to bring digital marketers a more robust selection of segmentation approaches. Advertisers, agencies, and publishers already using these segments for offline marketing efforts now have a valuable tool for efficiently executing similar marketing strategies online."

Integrated data partners provide additional audience segmentation schemes

The release of comScore Segment Metrix 2.0 incorporates six new third-party segmentation schemes, including the first to be made available for the UK market, beginning with data from October 2011. All segmentation schemes are based on completely anonymised data used only for aggregate market research reporting purposes. The following is a complete list of the newly-available segmentation approaches available in Segment Metrix 2.0:

• Kantar Shopcom Segments deliver insights into the online behaviour of US consumers through segments leveraging purchase behaviour from 231 million consumers covering 4,500 individual retailers with 73 000 individual retail store locations and over 34.1 billion SKU-level transactions across the consumer packaged goods (CPG) and non-CPG sectors. Segment insights focus on the CPG sector.
  
• IXI Digital Segments provide visibility into the online behaviour of US Internet users by their likely financial profile through proprietary segments built from IXI's financial and economic insights founded on anonymous aggregated wealth and asset data from 95 financial services firms.
  
• Infogroup Segments are designed to deliver insights into the online behaviour of US consumers through consumer behavioural-modelled segments leveraging data aggregated from 3.5 billion transactions and 3000 different sources.
  
• Bizo Segments leverage B2B publisher-sourced audience data designed to deliver insights into the online behaviour of US business audiences based on specific business demographics such as industry, company size, job function, and seniority.
  
• Catalist Segments are designed to deliver insights into the online behaviour of US voters and non-voters by political affiliation through segments based on voter registration, commercial, and census data for more than 265 million persons across the US
  
• Kantar Target Group Index (TGI) Segments are designed to deliver insights into the online behaviour of Internet users in the UK through segments created by Kantar with TGI survey data results fused with the comScore panel. Over 10 000 audience targets are available across multiple categories related to consumer products and services, media consumption, attitudes and beliefs, and demographics.

With a broader variety of segmentation approaches catering to various business needs, comScore Segment Metrix 2.0 offers advertisers, publishers and ad agencies across various industries the ability to better coordinate and integrate their online and offline marketing strategies.

"Marketers have long relied on audience segmentation to efficiently reach defined target audiences across media platforms, but this capability has been lacking for the online world despite its rapidly growing share of total media spend," said Katie Casavant, Kantar Shopcom CEO. "The combination of comScore online behavioural data and a wide variety of audience segmentation schemes in Segment Metrix 2.0 helps fill that void, providing marketers with a necessary tool for their cross-media marketing toolkit. The result is a greater ability to link online and offline marketing strategies in a manner that aligns with campaign objectives."

Segments help marketers align online visitation with offline purchase behaviour

Below is an illustration of the insights available through the consumer behavioural segmentation approaches available in Segment Metrix 2.0. Using Kantar Shopcom Segments, which provide visibility into the online behaviours of consumers according to their purchase of CPG products, marketers can ascertain where heavy, moderate, and light purchasers of a particular category or brand can be found online. For instance, the table below shows the top properties in the Community category for consumers who are heavy buyers of disposable diapers.

Unsurprisingly, highly-trafficked properties catering to women and mothers comprise a majority of the top ten Community sites. However, a look at the composition of unique visitors from the target audience for each of these sites shows that some have a higher relative representation for the target audience than others. While Glam Media may rank first in terms of audience reach, the iVillage and Scripps Networks Interactive properties exhibit the highest relative representation for the target audience, an indicator that these sites might be able to reach the target more efficiently.

Financial segments link online behaviour with key financial characteristics

The following illustration highlights insights to be gained from another available segmentation approach. IXI Segments provide marketers with the ability to segment users according to financial attributes beyond the use of traditional household income metrics. The table below shows how the top US retail sites in September 2011 compare in terms of the composition of their audiences according to estimated discretionary spending - a measure of household expenditures excluding fixed expenses. Unlike the household income measure, discretionary spending provides a more direct view of the estimated propensity and ability of audiences to actually spend their income.

The table below shows that Amazon Sites and Apple.com Worldwide Sites - two of the top three US retail sites - share nearly identical audience profiles when segmented by discretionary spending. In comparison, third-ranking retail site Walmart has a lower percentage of its users with at least US$75 000 in estimated discretionary spending.

Cautionary note regarding forward-looking statements

This release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, including, but not limited to, expectations regarding the impact and benefits to comScore of the comScore Segment Metrix 2.0, financial or otherwise. These statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual results to differ materially, including, but not limited to: the features and characteristics of the products, the rate of development of the digital marketing intelligence, Internet advertising and e-Commerce markets; the growth of the Internet as a medium for commerce, content, advertising and communications; and the acceptance of new products and methodologies by the industry, including existing and prospective clients.

For a detailed discussion of these and other risk factors, please refer to comScore's most recent respective Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Annual Reports on Form 10-K and from time to time other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), which are available on the SEC's Web site (http://www.sec.gov).

Stockholders of comScore are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date such statements are made. comScore does not undertake any obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements to reflect events, circumstances or new information after the date of this press release, or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.