Nielsen, the leading global provider of information and insights, has launched a new online audience measurement solution, Nielsen Online Ratings.

New Zealand is amongst the first countries to provide robust metrics that capture internet use measuring people from all sources and devices.

"The online landscape has grown significantly over the last 10 years and audience measurement methodologies must evolve to reflect this," emphasises Claire Harris, Managing Director of Nielsen's Media business in New Zealand.

"Nielsen Online Ratings provides a quantum leap in online measurement by delivering an in-depth perspective of the online consumer and the digital universe."

Nielsen Online Ratings utilises world-class audience measurement methodology, combining data from a new online ratings panel with page tagging data from Nielsen's Market Intelligence service to report key insights on site metrics, demographics, reach and frequency.

Figures from the new service reveal that in May 2012 there were 3.3 million New Zealanders (aged 2+) actively online, averaging 51 sessions and spending a total 39 hours per month.

Google tops website rankings in New Zealand with a unique audience of nearly three million in May. Facebook follows Google with 2.7 million, while YouTube, TradeMe and Yahoo! had a unique audience of 2.1 million, 1.9 million and 1.8 million respectively.

The new online solution provides more accurate data and allows the online industry to:

- Capture data from all sources, locations and devices

- Measure people not computers

- Accurately represent all sites visited by New Zealanders, including niche sites

- Optimise online media buying, selling and planning

- Enable cross-media comparisons with television, radio, newspapers and magazines

Liz Fraser, General Manager, MSN New Zealand said: "The new Nielsen Online Ratings approach paints a more accurate picture of the number of people visiting all types of digital content. Nielsen Online Ratings establishes measures that can be directly compared to other media, allowing advertisers to make a more strategic assessment of media placement. This is a tremendous win for the entire industry."