comScore, Inc., a US-based provider of digital marketing information, has released its annual report on Latin America’s key digital trends of the past year and what they mean for the year ahead. The ‘2012 Latin America Digital Future in Focus’ examines how the prevailing trends in social media, online video, digital advertising, mobile and search are defining the current marketplace and how they are likely to shape the coming year.
According to the report, Latin America’s online population grew faster than any other global region in 2011, rising 16 percent to 129.3 million visitors in December 2011.Google Sites reigned as the most-visited property in December 2011, reaching 123.4 million visitors in the region, while Facebook.com led as the most-engaging web property accounting for 25 percent of all time spent online. Social networking, which eclipsed portals as the most-engaging web activity in November 2011, accounted for nearly 30 percent of online minutes at the end of the year, an increase of 9.5 percentage points over the previous year.
Latin America is home to five of the most engaged social networking markets worldwide, according to the report. Internet users in Argentina averaged 10.7 hours on social networking sites in December 2011, followed by Chile (9.5 hours per visitor), Peru (8.7 hours), Colombia (7.6 hours) and Mexico (7.1 hours).
Further, the report notes that Latin Americans continue to display a strong propensity for search. In 2011, the total number of searches conducted increased 38 percent to more than 21 billion in December. With an average of 173 searches per searcher, Latin America leads the globe in search frequency.
Mobile phones and tablets continue to account for a growing amount of digital traffic, with Puerto Rico leading the region with 7.7 percent of all digital traffic consumed away from a personal computer. Apple led across nearly all markets in share of non-computer traffic fuelled by the iPhone and iPad.
The results of the study will be presented via a complimentary, live webinar on March 22. Alejandro Fosk, comScore senior vice president for Latin America, will share key insights from the 2012 Latin America Future in Focus report and discuss what these trends mean for marketers in the coming year and beyond.
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