ABC.COM IS THE TOP ENTERTAINMENT TV SITE FOR MAY
Site Ranks No. 1 for Both Unique Visitors and Page Views
Full Episodes of Summer Programming on ABC.com Include "American Inventor,"
"Ex-Wives Club," "Fast Cars & Superstars," "Fat March," "National Bingo Night,"
"Shaq's Big Challenge," "The Next Best Thing" and "Traveler"
Dedicated to expanding its network and channel brands across multiple platforms and connecting viewers with their favorite shows anytime and anywhere, Disney-ABC Television Group announced today that it was the top entertainment TV site for May, ranking No. 1 for both unique visitors and page views according to Media Metrix and Nielsen NetRatings.
ABC.com more than doubled its unique users from the same period a year ago (14,643,000 vs. 6,972,000, up 110%) and more than tripled its page views (398,000 vs. 125,553, up 217%), according to Media Metrix. Nielsen NetRatings reported ABC.com up 81% in unique users from a year ago (14,542,000 vs. 8,034,254) and up 184% in page views (341,530 vs. 120,257). In addition, there were over seven million episode starts for the week of May 19-25, the most since the full episode player re-launched last September.
This summer ABC.com will feature full episodes on its broadband player of summer programming including "American Inventor," "Ex-Wives Club," "Fast Cars & Superstars," "Fat March," "National Bingo Night," "Shaq's Big Challenge," "The Next Best Thing" and "Traveler." The player currently offers full-length episodes in high-quality, standard definition resolution of over a dozen series, including viewer favorites "Grey's Anatomy," "Desperate Housewives," "Lost," "Ugly Betty" and "Brothers & Sisters," to name a few. The episodes are offered free to consumers on ABC's website the day after their broadcast premieres.
Next month ABC.com will begin presenting content in HD. Launching initially as a beta test in early July, the full-episode broadband player's HD channel will feature a limited amount of content in true high-definition 1280 X 720 resolution from such series as "Lost," "Desperate Housewives," "Grey's Anatomy" and "Ugly Betty." In conjunction with the launch of the new season in September, a more robust HD programming lineup will be offered.
Additionally, this fall ABC.com's full episode player will be expanded further to include national news and local content, in addition to primetime entertainment programming. This new player will be geo-targeted, offering the ability for local ads and content to be more relevant to each individual user.
In April the full-episode player began offering full-screen viewing, as well as a small "mini" screen that users can position wherever they choose on their desktops, in addition to the two original standard viewing size viewing options. To date, ABC affiliates covering 80% of the country -- including all major affiliate groups and the ten ABC owned stations -- have launched or have committed to launching the player on their own websites and are taking advantage of the opportunity to incorporate local advertising into the programming.
Disney-ABC Television Group is home to all of The Walt Disney Company's worldwide entertainment and news television properties. The Group includes the ABC Television Network, Disney Channel's worldwide portfolio of kids' channels, ABC Family and SOAPnet; as well as television production and syndication divisions ABC Studios, Disney-ABC Domestic Television and Disney-ABC International Television. Disney-ABC Television Group also manages the Radio Disney Network in addition to the Company's equity interest in Lifetime Entertainment Services and A&E Television Networks.
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