The Online Publishers Association announced that consumers spent $300 million
to access Web content in the first quarter of 2002.
The segment was led by RealNetworks Inc.'s real.com and its 750,000 subscribers, followed
by The Wall Street Journal's wsj.com and dating site match.com.
The OPA said 12.4 million U.S. consumers are paying for Web content, not
counting adult material, versus 5.3 million last year. Overall subscription
spending hit $675 million in 2001.
'As content providers get smarter about creating valuable for-pay offerings,
an increasing number of consumers are responding with their wallets,' OPA
executive director Michael Zimbalist said.
Among sites with cable connections, Playboy Enterprises Inc.'s playboy.com ranked 13th, Microsoft Corp.'s msn.com 15th and ESPN's espn.go.com 17th.
The OPA said 85 percent of the money was spent on the top 50 sites.
Subscriptions accounted for 85 percent of the revenue, while single purchases
made up 15 percent.
The trade group said the renewal rate on one-year subscriptions was 72
percent. The average monthly subscription price was $8.46.
