2008 Terra comScore Hispanic Digital Study Provides New Insights Into The Diverse Hispanic Online Community

    MIAMI, May 5 /PRNewswire/ -- Terra, the largest original digital
 content producer for U.S. Hispanics, released today the top line results of
 a new research study conducted by comScore for Terra, revealing important
 information about the diverse Hispanic digital market. The study was
 conducted between January 31 and February 28 of 2008 and a total of 3,513
 consumers 12+ completed the survey, making it the most comprehensive to
 date with 1.65% margin of error.
 
     "We are committed to helping our clients and marketers better
 understand the fast growing, fast changing Hispanic online market. This
 study provides key information that will allow them to target specific
 segments and thus improve their return on online advertising investment,"
 said Fernando Rodriguez CEO of Terra Networks U.S.A.
 
     Online Hispanics embrace technology. Internet usage outpaces
 television.
 
     In general, online Hispanics, independent of their language preferences
 and acculturation levels, are heavily engaged in technology with 66%
 reporting that they keep up with the latest developments and influence
 family members and friends in their purchase decisions for new technology.
 Internet usage now outpaces television with 56% reporting to spend at least
 one hour per day online vs. 50% that reported spending one hour per day
 watching television. 72% have computers and televisions in the same room
 and 75% of these multi- task use the Internet and television together
 always or very frequently. Of the multi-taskers, 44% send e-mail or instant
 messages about the show they are watching and 40% report researching for
 products advertised on television, while 35% go to the website about the
 show being watched.
 
     94% of online Hispanics own a cell phone and use it as their primary
 line. 93% use the voice mail feature and 86% report sending text messages.
 6 in 10 online Hispanics own four or more electronic devices with 68% of
 these owning a Palm Pilot or Blackberry and 12% owning a portable PC.
 
     Offline Activities
 
     Online Hispanics are actively engaged in their community with 40%
 saying they have voted in an election, 34% saying they attend church
 regularly, 24% have participated in fundraising efforts and 13% have
 participated in environmental causes.
 
     Dining Out, shopping and movies top the list of preferred leisure
 activities by Online Hispanics with 55% percent saying they have
 participated in these at least 10 times in the last six months and 86%
 reporting to have participated at least 5 times.
 
 

     -- 77% Went out to dinner
     -- 76% Went to the movies
     -- 73% Went shopping
     -- 44% Cooked
     -- 43% Visited a bar or a club
     -- 39% Went to a concert
     -- 33% Played the lottery
     -- 32% Went/belong to a gym or health club
     -- 27% Went dancing or to a dance club
     When asked about technology and entertainment 73% regularly rent
 movies, 69% bought CD's, 68% purchased a movie, 40% downloaded music and
 35% a ring tone.
 
     Online Engagement Segments
 
     The study also breaks new ground in helping understand online Hispanics
 by dividing them according to online engagement segments (OES), ethnic
 pride and language usage and providing specific data about the New York,
 Miami, Los Angeles, Houston and Chicago markets. The results indicate that
 Heavy OES tend to be male, young and live in large cities. They tend to
 speak Spanish at home, be foreign born and report a high level of ethnic
 pride. Medium OES respondents are also skewed towards the younger age
 groups, but have an even gender split. They are more likely to live in Los
 Angeles or New York vs. Miami, were born in the US, and speak a mix of
 English and Spanish at home. Light OES respondents are skewed female and
 are the oldest of the three segments with a median age of 33 years.
 Compared with the other two groups, they are more likely to speak English
 exclusively at home, to live outside the five urban Hispanic markets, and
 have the lowest level of Hispanic pride. They also report the lowest median
 household income levels.
 
     The study further reveals strong ethnic pride and conservative family
 values with 84% saying they respect their elders, 73% saying they are very
 family oriented and 40% saying that religion plays a big role in their
 families.
 
     "Terra commissioned comScore to conduct data mining and segmentations
 with respect to the engagement, language preference, and cultural identity
 of the US online Latino population. The study revealed previously unknown
 correlations involving relationships between Latino identity and Internet
 use. Neither one of us knew what would emerge, but the results speak for
 themselves," added Josh Chasin, Chief Research Officer for comScore.
 
 

     Methodology:
 
     -- Survey responses were collected online in English and Spanish by
        comScore. A total of 3,513 surveys were completed between January 31
        and February 28, 2008.
     -- The margin of error for a sample of this size is +/- 1.65 percentage
        points (19 times out of 20).
     -- All participants reside in the USA, are aged 12+ years, and are
        Hispanic.
     -- The sample was designed to be nationally representative, yet ensuring
        the ability to focus on 5 specific DMAs:  New York, Los Angeles, Miami,
        Chicago, and Houston.
     About Terra
 
     Terra is the largest original digital content producer for U.S.
 Hispanics. Its portal Terra.com includes 29 channels in Spanish featuring
 News, Music, Entertainment, Sports and Terra TV, as well as community
 areas, blogs and services, reaching the broadest audience in the U.S.
 Hispanic market according to comScore Media Metrix and Nielsen/Net Ratings.
 Terra is part of Terra Networks S.A., a leading global Internet group
 operating portals in the U.S., Latin America and Spain and the #1 Internet
 access provider in Latin America and Spain.
 
 

     Press Contact:
     Lina Baena
     lina@ccomgroupinc.com
     305.371.4030
 
 

SOURCE Terra