Study reveals that a very small group of consumers who are not representative of the total U.S. online population is accountable for the vast majority of display ad click-through behavior.

Starcom, Tacoda and comScore’s “Natural Born Clickers” findings suggest “the click is dead” as go-to measurement of effectiveness for brand-building display advertising campaigns. The study illustrates that heavy clickers represent just 6% of the online population yet account for 50% of all display ad clicks. While many online media companies use click-through rate as an ad negotiation currency, the study shows that heavy clickers are not representative of the general public.

Judging a campaign’s effectiveness by clicks can be detrimental because it overlooks the importance of branding while simultaneously drawing conclusions from a sub-set of people who may not be representative of the target audience.

The emergence of the new 'ubersexual' man presents a potential goldmine for global manufacturers and marketers according to the latest research from Euromonitor International.

Cosmetics companies, health clubs, retailers and travel companies all look set to profit from the changing male image, as men become more image-conscious. The ubersexual man is defined by Euromonitor International as 'more complex, more thoughtful, more culinary and better groomed than macho man, but more traditionally masculine than the metrosexual'. They are, therefore, more likely to prepare and research meals, buy cosmetics and toiletries, and join health clubs.

Groomer	Shaving, hair care products
Skin consciousness	Moisturising lotions, face masks
Fitness seekers	Health clubs, home gym equipment
Gourmet cook	Cookery books, video
Shopper	Image brands of consumer electronics
Fashion follower	Fashion clothing, home furnishing
Hedonist traveller	Food and wine tourism

The Ubersexual man is a more complex and thoughtful Generation Y male, essentially a more masculine version of the metrosexual with a wider set of interests. This label creates a role model in terms of lifestyle, appearance and buying habits, which men are willing to aspire to. As the boundaries between genders continue to be broken down, global companies are expected to find increasingly innovative ways to profit from the evolving characteristics of the male consumer.

Who fits the bill? Advertising agency JWT, says the Top Ten ubersexuals are Jon Stewart, Guy Ritchie, Pierce Brosnan, Ewan McGregor, Barack Obama, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Donald Trump, Bill Clinton, George Glooney and — at No. 1 — U2 rock star and world peace activist Bono.

comScore Networks today announced the launch of comScore World Metrix, the first true estimate of global online audience size and behavior based on activity from the world’s largest online behavioral research panel. The comScore World Metrix panel has active representation from countries that comprise 99 percent of the global Internet population. In launching comScore World Metrix, the company announced that 694 million people, age 15+, used the Internet worldwide from all locations in March 2006, representing 14 percent of the world’s total population within this age group. This number marks the first worldwide universe estimate based on a consistent methodology across all countries.

Israel, Finland and South Korea Lead the World in Online Engagement

comScore also released the top 15 countries ranked by average hours spent online per visitor for March 2006, as a measure of engagement. Israel led the list, with the average user spending 57.5 hours online during the month – twice as much time compared to the average person in the U.S, which did not rank in the top 15 countries. Rounding out the top 5 were Finland, South Korea, the Netherlands and Taiwan – all countries with high broadband penetration.

Until now, we've had to rely on Alexa for worldwide numbers. Now we've got numbers with some real work and QA behind them. Internet users outside the U.S. now account for 80 percent of the world's online population, with rapidly developing countries experiencing double-digit growth rates year-over- year.

College students in the USA, may love to use the latest gadgets and wear the hottest fashions, but they may not know where their favorite brands originate, according to exclusive new research from market research firm Anderson Analytics.

53 percent of students thought Finnish cell phone company Nokia to be Japanese, while 57.8 percent thought Korean electronics company Samsung was Japanese. And 48.5 percent mistakenly thought Adidas clothing came from the United States, not Germany.

"For the most part, this next generation of educated American consumers either have no clue where the brands they use come from or simply assume everything comes from the United States, Japan or Germany," said Tom H. C. Anderson, Managing Partner, Anderson Analytics,

The study is based on an online survey of 1,000 US college student conducted during the fall 2006 semester by Anderson Analytics’ GenX2Z.com, which provides in-depth research on the youth market. See how students rated brands here