As the Internet grows in popularity as a news source a question regularly asked is which are South Africa’s largest websites. Establishing exactly which are the country’s most popular sites is not completely straightforward although over the past year there has been some consolidation in the metrics market. <\/p>\n
At this point there are two primary methods of measuring web visitors: Using the Online Publishers Association statistics provided by Nielsen Online, or using the numbers provided by the Website Association of South Africa. In the past these two bodies reflected different figures because of the methodology they used and their membership. At the end of this year they are very similar and reflect a similar position. <\/p>\n
The most recent report from the OPA shows that news sites rank highly on the South African most popular list with most of the large and established media houses being represented: <\/p>\n
news24.com – 1.98 million unique browsers a month
IOL News – 1.19 million unique browsers
MSN – 922 160 unique browsers
Hotmail MSN – 887 773 unique browsers
Webmail Interface – 790 027 unique browsers
Vodacom4Me – 739 578 unique browsers
MWeb.co.za – 674 532 unique browsers
24.com – 644 430 unique browsers
MyBroadband.co.za – 632 252 unique browsers
The Times – 587 694 unique browsers<\/p>\n
Competition for a spot on this list is becoming increasingly tough as new players – MyBroadband was not previously an OPA member, for example – enter the list and mobile browsing trends start to make themselves felt. <\/p>\n
As evidence of the growing competition, the Mail&Guardian, which was one of the first publications online in South Africa now no longer sites in the top ten most popular sites in South Africa. And this is not because it has lost readership. It is in spite of a 21% increase in unique visitors to the site in the third quarter of 2008. <\/p>\n
With this level of competition in the online publishing world and the promise of better broadband, 2009 is set to exceed all expectations. <\/p>\n