Global net audiences surpass 1bn

Asia Pacific – Global internet audiences surpassed the one billion mark in December, with Asia Pacific leading the charge with a 41% share of global users.

New data from comScore's World Metrix audience measurement service shows the Asia Pacific region accounted for the highest share of global internet users at 41%, followed by Europe at 28%, North America with 18% and Latin-America 7%.

Throughout December, China represented the largest online audience in the world with 180 million internet users, representing nearly 18% of the total worldwide internet audience. The US followed closely with a 16.2% share of total users.

Not surprising was Google's dominance as the most visited site, with the tech giant's pages generating 778 million visitors throughout December. Microsoft followed with 648 million visitors and Yahoo sites generated a total of 562.6 million visitors.

Facebook.com, which has grown a dramatic 127% in the past year to 222 million visitors, now ranks as the top social networking site worldwide and the seventh most popular property in the world.

"Surpassing one billion global users is a significant landmark in the history of the internet," Magid Abraham, president & CEO of comScore, said.

"It is a monument to the increasingly unified global community in which we live and reminds us that the world truly is becoming more flat. The second billion will be online before we know it, and the third billion will arrive even faster than that, until we have a truly global network of interconnected people and ideas that transcend borders and cultural boundaries."