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2008 Press Releases

Most searched-for toys: retro gifts making a comeback this Christmas

December 17th

London, 17 December 2008 - Hitwise, the leading online competitive intelligence service and an Experian company, today reveals that searches for toys doubled during November as the gift buying season began in earnest.

High street retailers winning the online shopping battle

December 8th

London, 8 December 2008 Hitwise, the leading online competitive intelligence service and an Experian company, today reveals that more shoppers than ever are abandoning the high street for the Internet this Christmas, with many of the fastest growing retailers online familiar high street names.

IMRG-Hitwise Hot Shops List, November 2008

November 25th

London, 25 Novemeber 2008, Hitwise publishes the eleventh quarterly edition of the IMRG-HITWISE HOT SHOPS LIST, which ranks by popularity, as indicated by visits, the top 50 UK e-retailers* selling goods and services within the IMRG Index Classification

Nintendo Wii Fit most searched-for gadget online in the run-up to Christmas

November 13th

London, 13 November 2008 Hitwise, the leading online competitive intelligence service, today revealed that Wii Fit, Nintendo's popular video game, is currently the most searched-for product by UK Internet shoppers in the run-up to Christmas.

Economic downturn benefiting budget Travel and Cruise companies

October 29th

London, 29 October 2008 Hitwise, an Experian company, today reveals that the economic downturn is proving to be a mixed blessing for online travel companies.

Second hand goods gain popularity as UK Internet users look to beat the credit crunch

October 23rd

London, 23 October 2008, Hitwise, an Experian company, today reveals that UK Internet users are increasingly looking for second hand goods online.

UK consumers changing online behaviour to cope with credit crunch

September 26th

London, 26 September 2008 - UK consumers are increasingly turning to the Internet to help them deal with the financial pressures and insecurities brought on by the global credit crunch.

House and Garden Retailers booming despite falling house prices

September 11th

London, 11 September - Hitwise, the leading online competitive intelligence service and an Experian company, today reveals that UK Internet visits to House and Garden retail websites have increased by 20.5% over the last 12 months despite the credit crunch and falling house prices.

IMRG-Hitwise Hot Shops List, August 2008

August 21st

London, 21 August, 2008 Hitwise publishes the tenth quarterly edition of the IMRG-HITWISE HOT SHOPS LIST, which ranks by popularity, as indicated by visits, the top 50 UK e-retailers* selling goods and services within the IMRG Index Classification

Top brands account for 9 in 10 UK Internet Searches

August 14th

London, 14 August, 2008 - UK consumers are shunning generic Internet searches, such as ‘cheap flights’ or ‘broadband’, in favour of searching for popular brands.

High Street Retailers Winning Online Shopping Battle

August 6th

London, 6 August 2008 - Hitwise, the leading online competitive intelligence service, today reveals that high street retailers are pulling ahead of their online only counterparts when it comes to online shopping in the UK.

Facebook.com largest social network in UK with 45% market share

July 22nd

London, 22nd July, 2008 - Facebook.com accounted for 45.29% of UK Internet visits to social networking sites during June 2007, Hitwise announced today. This represents a 188% increase compared with a year ago.

22% Increase in Paid Brand Search Post Google's UK Trademark Changes

June 19th

London, Thursday 19 June 2008 Hitwise, the leading online competitive intelligence service, today revealed that the top online brands in the UK have significantly increased their spending on paid brand search marketing following the recent changes to Google's trademark policy.

Google Receives 87% of UK Searches in May 2008

June 10th

London, June 10th 2008 Google search properties accounted for 87% of all UK searches for the four weeks ending May 31 2008, Hitwise announced today. This represents a 12 percent increase compared to May 2007.

IMRG - Hitwise Hot Shops List, May 2008

June 2nd

London, 2 June, 2008 Hitwise publishes the new SPECIAL 2ND ANNIVERSARY edition of the IMRG-HITWISE HOT SHOPS LIST, which ranks by popularity, as indicated by visits, the top 50 UK e-retailers* selling goods and services within the IMRG Index Classification.

Sex and the City fever breaks out in London and New York

May 27th

London, Tuesday 27 May - Hitwise, the leading online competitive intelligence service, today reveals that the decision to hold the world premiere of the new Sex and the City movie in London has led to a surge in online searches in the UK.

Freesat proves popular with consumers online

May 14th

London, 14 May 2008 - Hitwise, the leading online competitive intelligence service, today reveals that the launch of Freesat, the free satellite TV service provided by the BBC and ITV in the UK, proved popular with online consumers during its launch week.

Google websites account for over one third of all UK Internet traffic

April 28th

London, 28 April 2008 - Hitwise, the leading online competitive intelligence service, today reveals that the top 100 Google Internet properties sent over one third of all Internet traffic to websites in the UK during March 2008.

UK Internet traffic to Ticketing websites reaches highest level in over 12 months

April 15th

London, 15 April 2008 Hitwise, the leading online competitive intelligence service, today reveals that UK Internet traffic to websites selling tickets for concerts, sporting events and the theatre increased by 49% for the week ending 5 April 2008, reaching its highest level in over 12 months.

Hitwise UK Announces Top Websites and Brands in 2007

April 14th

London, 14 April 2008 - Hitwise, the leader in online competitive intelligence, today announced the most popular websites from more than 50 industries in the UK during 2007.

UK Internet traffic to video sites increases by 178% in 12 months

March 26th

ondon, Wednesday 26 March 2008 - Hitwise, the leading online competitive intelligence service, today reveals that UK Internet traffic to online video websites increased by 178% between February 2007 and 2008.

Ninefold increase in UK Internet visits to Polish websites

February 20th

London, Wednesday 20 February 2008 Hitwise, the leading online competitive intelligence service, today reveals that UK Internet traffic to Polish websites has increased ninefold over the last two years.

Moonpig.com a Valentine's Success

February 7th

London, Thursday 7 February 2008 Hitwise, the leading online competitive intelligence service, today reveals that online card delivery company Moonpig.com is currently experiencing its highest ever level of UK Internet traffic in the run up to Valentine's Day.

UK Internet Traffic to Newspaper Websites Reaches New High

January 29th

London, Tuesday 29 January 2008 Hitwise, the leading online competitive intelligence service, today reveals that UK Internet traffic to newspaper websites reached its highest level in over two years last week off the back of a number of big news stories.

Social Media 'Super Advocates' Will Make or Break Brands' Reputations in 2008

January 15th

London, 15 January 2008 - 2008 will herald the arrival of the Web 2.0 "super advocate" - the corporate organisation's biggest ally or enemy.

Traffic to BBC iPlayer increases 14-fold

January 9th

London, Wednesday 9 January 2008 Hitwise, the leading online competitive intelligence service, today reveals that UK Internet traffic to the BBC’s iPlayer website increased 14-fold between the weeks ending 8 December 2007 and 5 January 2008.

Searches for post-Christmas sales more than trebled in 2007

January 3rd

London, Thursday 3 January 2008 Hitwise, the leading online competitive intelligence service, today reveals that the number of UK consumers searching for post-Christmas sales online more than trebled during the 2007 holiday period.