More than 20.6 million people visited a news website or app in October, reaching 96.2% of online Australians aged 14+, according to Ipsos iris data.
Among the local news events and entertainment that fuelled interest and attracted audiences were King Charles and Queen Camilla’s Australian visit, the finales of The Block and The Voice Australia, and Queensland election results.
Global news that piqued the interest of Australians were the US election results, Hurricane Milton hitting Florida and the tragic death of former One Direction star Liam Payne.
ABC News led the charge in audience numbers with over 11,000, followed by News.com.au. Nine’s online news website trailed behind in third, followed by 7News.com.au, while Daily Mail Australia rounded out the top five.
The chart below shows the News brands’ ranking during October 2024 by online audience size.
Music festival and events season see Events and Attractions category rise
As summer approaches and the live music festival season ready to get into swing, there has been a 2% month on month increase in online audiences, or 292,000 Australians aged, 14+, in the Events and Attractions category, to reach a 13.9 million-strong audience in total. This represents an 11% year on year increase.
This increase was predominantly driven by the Music Events sub-category, which jumped by 30%, or 650,000 more visitors month on month, as Oasis, Laneway and Knotfest tickets all went on sale.
The increases were driven by people aged 14 to 24, with a huge 97% month on month, or 348,000, jump in online audiences. The 40 to 54 ‘Oasis generation’ swelled by 28%, or an additional 162,000 people, month on month in the category.
A range of conferences, including the high-profile SXSW Australia, saw the Business Expos and Conferences sub-category rise by 29%, or 57,000 people, month on month to reach an audience of 255,000.
The chart below shows the Events and Attractions brands’ ranking during October 2024 by online audience size.
Other industry categories record peak audience numbers and time spent online
Ipsos iris reported a number of increases in other categories, including a 11%, or 967,000, online audience rise in the Energy and Utilities category year on year.
The Homes & Property category, buoyed by the Spring selling season, rose by 8%, or 1 million year on year.
The Social Networking and Finance categories hit record audiences in October, at 21.4 million and 20.7 million respectively – and the highest since the launch of Ipsos iris in January 2023.
The Automotive category hit a peak for time spent online per person, up 8% to 21.21 minutes on average, while Health also peaked at 60.27 minutes on average, up by 20%, in October – and both the highest since Ipsos iris’s launch.
More than 21 million Australians used the internet in October
Ipsos iris, Australia’s digital audience measurement currency endorsed by IAB Australia, showed that more than 21.4 million Australians aged 14+ used the internet in October and spent on average 4.6 hours per day, or almost 141 hours for the month, online.
The most consumed website and app categories in September were social networking (21.4 million), search engines (21.3 million), technology (21.3 million), retail and commerce (21.1 million) and entertainment (21 million).
Ipsos iris, which officially launched in March 2023, provides accurate data about the 21.4 million Australians aged 14+ who access a wide variety of digital content and services across smartphone, PC/laptop and tablet devices.