CommerceNet and Nielsen to Conduct Major Study of Use of the Internet.

MENLO PARK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 17, 1995--CommerceNet and Nielsen Media Research announced today that they will conduct an Internet demographic survey designed to be the most comprehensive research to date of the Internet's users and applications.

The initial survey will consist of 3,000 telephone interviews, randomly selected to represent the population of the United States and Canada. The research will target three classifications of people based on their primary usage: Internet users, commercial online service users, and people who are not online. Questions will focus on demographics, personal and business uses, and attitudes. The survey is scheduled to be completed in the fall of this year.

"No one doubts that the Internet is a huge marketplace, but everyone has a different opinion regarding the numbers and types of users, and how and why they use the Internet," said Cathy Medich, CommerceNet's executive director. "The results of this demographic survey will quantify the true number of Internet users."

CommerceNet is funding the research to produce the definitive study of the Internet using scientific surveying methods. Most Internet research to date has involved self-selected respondents to questionnaires issued via the Internet itself.

"We chose Nielsen because we felt their methodology would be the most effective for obtaining the data we want," said Tom Masotto, the project leader who oversees CommerceNet's Internet Marketing Working Group, which is spearheading this survey. "CommerceNet and Nielsen are working closely together to best understand the Internet's user base."

"Nielsen supports the efforts of CommerceNet to make the Internet a viable place to transact business," said David Harkness, Senior Vice President for Planning and Development at Nielsen. "The Internet is a key part of our interactive research activities, and this study will nicely complement our technology reports and other online efforts."

While the initial focus of the survey will be the United States and Canada, later phases of research may involve individuals in selected countries in Europe and Asia, making the survey global in scope. The study will also involve a six-month follow-up designed to provide data on user trends.

The results of the Internet Demographics Survey will be contrasted to a number of other analyses, including Nielsen's Home Technology Report; studies of the launches of commercial online services; and surveys completed by Internet market researchers, Associate Professors Donna Hoffman and Tom Novak of the Owen School at Vanderbilt University.

CommerceNet, headquartered in Menlo Park, California, is a consortium of over 110 companies and organizations whose charter is to accelerate the use of the Internet for electronic commerce applications. Consortium members include leading companies in the electronics, computer, financial service and information service industries, and other companies and organizations committed to electronic commerce. Information about CommerceNet can be obtained by calling 415/617-8790, sending e-mail to [e-mail], or visiting CommerceNet's Internet site at http://www.commerce.net.

Nielsen Media Research, a company of The Dun & Bradstreet Corporation, has headquarters in New York City and offices in major markets across the U.S. It is the leading provider of television information services, both nationally and locally.

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