In the online race

Aug 20, 2007 06:59 GMT  ·  By

Microsoft, Google and Yahoo are on top of the world wide web. There is little doubt about this aspect and statistics come only to confirm the status quo. Still, due to the inherent variables associated with different metrics mechanisms the three Internet giants swap positions from ranking to ranking. The latest data published by comScore revealing the top 50 online properties for July 2007 indicates that Microsoft has slipped in the shadow of Yahoo and Google. Moreover, the Redmond company's online presence was also outpaced by the Time Warner Network. The data provided by comScore, manages to contradict statistics made available by Nielsen//NetRatings for July 2007.

comScore gives Yahoo! sites the lion's shares of the unique visitors pool in the past month. With a unique audience of over 133 million, Yahoo has taken the lead with Google closely trailing it. The online footprint of the Mountain View Internet giant is approximately 10 million smaller than that of Yahoo. Google is just shy of hitting 124 million visitors. However, the Mountain View-based company is also in danger of losing the second place to the Time Warner Network. With an audience of 123,7 million visitors, the Time Warner Network is breathing down Google's neck a little too close for comfort.

Microsoft occupies the forth position in the Top 50 Properties ranking, and is also the last company to score an audience over the 100 million milestone. The Redmond company attracted just 118 million unique visitors the past month. But while being only fourth in the comScore ranking, Microsoft is top dog for Nielsen//NetRating, which places the Redmond company ahead of Yahoo and Google. The statistics from Nielsen//NetRating give Microsoft more than 121 million unique visitors, Google just 117 million, and Yahoo only 111 million. This makes Microsoft the top parent company for July.