For the first time ever, Google Maps has overtaken long-time online maps leader MapQuest in January – at least, according to initial reports from comScore, as verified by Greg Sterling at Search Engine Land.
Sterling received figures from comScore, which he checked with the company, and reported that in January, Google Maps drew 42.2 million unique visitors in January, compared to MapQuest’s 41.5 million users.
His source at comScore noted that MapQuest still maintains its leadership position in terms of time spent on its site.
Figures released Hitwise on Feb. 11 showed that MapQuest held 39.49 percent of the U.S. market on Feb. 7, while Google Maps held 35.67 percent of the market.
This showed a widening of the gap between the two after Google Maps nearly overtook MapQuest in the week ending Jan. 3, according to Hitwise.
Hitwise suggests that Google Maps has risen strongly in recent months thanks to Google’s self-referral activities, noting that 61 percent of visits to Google Maps came straight from Google itself.
Yahoo! was the second most frequent referrer, but only accounted for 1.07 percent of U.S. visits to Google Maps, according to Hitwise.
Sterling, however, says in his post that there is more at play than Google’s self-referral. He mentions Google’s heavy investment in the product, as well as its API release, and takes time to touch upon Yahoo! and Microsoft’s falters.
Hitwise also noted that Google Maps received visits from 72,074 unique search terms during the four weeks leading up to its report, while MapQuest received visits from 11,466 unique search terms.
The company also noted that MapQuest’s familiar brand name accounted for much of its traffic, while Google Maps received much of its traffic from non-brand related search terms.
Look for Google Maps to continue its upward trend. This early indicator from comScore is likely to be a signal of more of the same to come.
http://searchengineland.com/comscore-to-report-google-maps-now-number-1-16570
http://weblogs.hitwise.com/us-heather-hopkins/2009/02/google_maps_edges_closer_to_ma_1.html
http://www.webpronews.com/topnews/2009/02/16/comscore-gives-google-maps-january-win
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