The leader in measuring the digital world - comScore, Inc. on May 14, 2009 released its monthly study of U. S. consumer activity at the top online properties for April 2009. The comScore study is based on data from the comScore Media Metrix service.

The comScore study found that April saw Americans turn to the Web for the latest information related to the swine flu, causing traffic to soar at CDC. gov. The month also saw visitation to social networking sites reach record numbers, driven by growth at Twitter. com and Facebook. com, as well as an increase in visitation to real estate and home-related sites as the spring season prompted many Americans to consider home improvements. The tax category also experienced strong growth as procrastinating Americans tried to beat the April 15 deadline.

Jack Flanagan, executive vice president of comScore Media Metrix, said "When news of the swine flu pandemic erupted, many Americans turned to the Internet as their primary source of information for how to keep themselves and their families safe. April also saw a record number of visitors at social networking sites with Facebook and Twitter each adding millions of new users as a result of continued media attention and overall interest in the sites."

According to the comScore study, News of the swine flu outbreak prompted many concerned Americans to jump online in search of information about prevention, detection and treatment of the virus. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's site, CDC. gov, witnessed a 142-percent increase to 5.7 million visitors, making it the top-gaining property in April.

The comScore study found that the social networking category experienced a record month, growing 12 percent to nearly 140 million visitors, or nearly three-quarters of the U. S. online population. MySpace Sites led the category with 71 million visitors, followed by Facebook. com with 67.5 million visitors, an increase of 10 percent from the previous month. Twitter. com, now the third ranked social networking site, experienced another explosive month of visitor growth, jumping 83 percent to 17 million visitors.

The study discovered that many Americans sought information related to their homes in April with the Real Estate category reporting a 10-percent increase to 48.4 million visitors and the Community - Home category gaining 10 percent to nearly 30 million visitors. Move Network led as the most visited real estate site attracting 13.2 million visitors (up 88 percent vs. March), followed by Yahoo! Real Estate with 6.8 million visitors (up 11 percent) and AOL Real Estate with 3.6 million visitors (up 15 percent).

The study revealed that the start of spring led many Americans to consider home repairs and remodeling, driving traffic to the Community - Home category. About. com Home & Garden led the category with nearly 4 million visitors (up 16 percent), followed by AOL Home with 3.8 million visitors (up 29 percent) and Better Homes & Gardens Network with 3.8 million visitors (up 13 percent).

According to the comScore study, Google Sites continued to lead as the most visited property in April with more than 155 million visitors, followed by Yahoo! Sites with 149 million visitors and Microsoft Sites with 126.5 million visitors. Facebook. com climbed one spot in the ranking to #8 with 67.5 million visitors.

According to the comScore study, Platform-A led the April Ad Focus ranking, reaching 91 percent of the nearly 193 million Americans online. Yahoo! Network ranked second, reaching 87 percent, while Google Ad Network ranked third with an 85 percent reach. Specific Media moved up seven spots to #5 reaching 82 percent, while FOX Audience Network climbed three positions to #6 reaching 77 percent of Americans online.