YouTube and Wikipedia ‘among top ten web brands’
New research has revealed that video-sharing website YouTube and free online information resource Wikipedia are among the web’s top ten brands.
The duo - often cited as prime examples of the Web 2.0 media and community-oriented revolution - entered Nielsen Online’s top ten list at the expense of video streaming company Real and the internet service provider AOL.
YouTube came in eighth place after its audience numbers skyrocketed 84 per cent in a single year to reach 9.9 million, while Wikipedia landed the number ten spot having enjoyed a 50 per cent spike in users, bringing it up to 9.5 million.
Among the current top ten, the only brands to experience a drop in audience were Apple and Microsoft, who lost six per cent and three per cent respectively.
Commenting on the shifting focus, Alex Burmaster, internet analyst at Nielsen Online, said: "The story of the last year has, undoubtedly, been the phenomenal growth in user-generated content, so it’s not surprising to see this reflected in the leading brands - gone are traditional powerhouses like Real and AOL."
The six most popular brands for 2007 remained static, with Google retaining its throne as the industry leader, followed by MSN/Windows Live, Microsoft, Yahoo!, BBC and eBay.
