Telstra has revealed the addition of almost one million new mobile services in the six months to December 2011, but Sensis revenues plummeted 24 percent in 12 months.
They were both the centre of major news events whose timing was known well in advance so people eager for the news knew they could get it from the Internet quicker than from anywhere else.
The verdict in Schappelle Corby's drug trial in Bali last year market marked the culmination of intense media coverage of a trial that had fascinated Australians for weeks. The lead up to Steve Irwin's memorial service and his eight year old daughter's speech was much shorter but the media attention probably more intense.
According to web hosting company, Hostworks, whose clients include major media outfits ninemsn and News Interactive, the Schapelle Corby verdict set a record for the amount of traffic a single news event generated to Australian news websites, yet that record was exceeded three times over by Bindi Irwin's speech at her father's memorial service.
Hostworks reports that the twin tragedies in September - the deaths of Steve Irwin and Peter Brock - produced a 'watershed month' for Internet news in Australia: generating huge peaks in traffic and, significantly, leaving a legacy of heightened awareness and usage of the Internet as a news source.
According to Hostworks managing director Marty Gauvin, “As a result of [the deaths of Irwin and Brock], more people have gone to the Internet for their news and enjoyed their experience. There’s also been a carry-through of demand. We estimate 20 percent more people are now using the Internet to collect their news than before September.”
Hostworks' enthusiasm is understandable, but it is really too early to talk about September being a watershed month (after all it only ended two days ago). However if the increased level of usage is sustained or, as is quite possible, snowballs, the description will certainly be justified.
David Bass
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