comScore Reports Rapid Growth in Use of U.S. Online Credit Card Services

    RESTON, Va., Aug. 8 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- comScore (Nasdaq:   SCOR),
 a leader in measuring the digital world, today released the results of a
 study of online credit card services, which revealed strong growth in the
 use of the Internet for credit card account management. The study found
 that customers visited their issuer's site 57 percent more often to service
 their accounts in 2006 than in 2005. This follows a 55 percent rise in 2005
 over 2004. Strong growth in online servicing has continued in the first
 quarter of 2007, as the number of customer visits to issuers' sites jumped
 to more than one billion, an increase of 32 percent versus the same period
 a year ago.
     Growth in Online Customer Visits
     Total U.S. - Home/Work/University Locations
     Source: comScore Credit Card Solutions Benchmarker
 
                       Total Customer Visits           Percentage Change
          Year              (Billions)                   vs. Year Ago
          2005                 2.31                           55 %
          2006                 3.62                           57 %
     63 Percent of Credit Card Users Find Online Servicing Important
     As part of the study, comScore measured consumer attitudes toward
 online servicing of credit cards. The survey revealed that 63 percent of
 credit card users find online servicing important to their overall
 experience with their credit card. Sixty-nine percent of all customers have
 logged into their credit card Web site at some point in time and 58 percent
 of online customers log in more than once a month. Among customers for whom
 online servicing is important, viewing online statements, paying credit
 card bills, and disputing charges were cited as the most important online
 services.
     Specific E-Servicing Activities that are Important to Consumers
     Total U.S. - Home/Work/University Locations
     Source: comScore Q2 2007 Credit Card Survey
 
                                           Percent of Respondents for Whom
     E-Servicing Activity                      E-Servicing is Important
     Viewing Online Statements                          83 %
     Making a payment (pay your
      credit card bill online)                          77 %
     Disputing a charge                                 62 %
     Underscoring the importance to customers of making payments online,
 comScore's Credit Card Solutions Benchmarker revealed that the number of
 online credit card payments has grown significantly during the past two
 years. In 2006, 524 million credit card bills were paid online, marking a
 73-percent increase versus 2004.
     Number of Credit Card Bills Paid Online at Issuer Site
     Total U.S. - Home/Work/University Locations
     Source: comScore Credit Card Solutions Benchmarker
 
                         Credit Card Bills
                            Paid Online               Percentage Change
          Year              (Millions)                  vs. Prior Year
          2005                 414                            37 %
          2006                 524                            27 %
     "Investing in e-servicing is critical for credit card issuers because
 it not only helps them realize cost savings but the Internet is also
 becoming the preferred channel for many customers to interact with the
 issuer's product and brand," said Kevin Levitt, vice president of
 comScore's credit card solutions group.
     62 Percent of Credit Card Users Willing to Switch to Paperless
 Statements
     Enrolling customers for paperless credit card statements is one of the
 biggest cost-saving opportunities for issuers, and the comScore survey
 revealed that 62 percent of credit card users are either already using the
 service or are willing to use the service. Issuers can expect paperless
 adoption to grow with rising adoption among younger consumers, as those
 ages 18 to 44 are 20 percent more likely to use the service than consumers
 age 45 and older. Incentives and appeals can boost further adoption of
 paperless statement service among various customer segments, with 58
 percent of them being enticed by a cash incentive.
     About the 2007 comScore Online Credit Card Report
     The report leverages comScore's proprietary panel of more than one
 million U.S. Internet users. Additional information aimed at gaining a
 deeper understanding of consumers' attitudes was gathered through a survey
 conducted among 1,974 U.S. online consumers in Q2 2007.
     The comScore Online Credit Card Report includes:
     --  Customer satisfaction with their credit card and issuer web site
     --  Insights into customer motivation behind storing credit card
         information online
     --  Attitudinal insights into consumers willingness to apply for a credit
         card online and barriers to online customer acquisition
     --  Customer preferences for various credit card features
     --  Insights into importance and adoption of online servicing activities
         among credit card customers
     --  Factors that could influence further adoption of paperless statements
         among credit card customers.
     --  Insights into additional e-servicing features desired by customers
     Credit Card issuers included in this analysis are American Express,
 Bank of America, Capital One, Chase, Citi Cards, Discover Card and others.
     Credit Card Industry professionals and members of the media may request
 the 2007 comScore Online Credit Card Report by visiting
 http://www.comscore.com/contact
     About comScore
     comScore, Inc. (Nasdaq:   SCOR) is a global leader in measuring the
 digital world. This capability is based on a massive, global cross-section
 of more than 2 million consumers who have given comScore permission to
 confidentially capture their browsing and transaction behavior, including
 online and offline purchasing. comScore panelists also participate in
 survey research that captures and integrates their attitudes and
 intentions. Through its proprietary technology, comScore measures what
 matters across a broad spectrum of behavior and attitudes. comScore
 analysts apply this deep knowledge of customers and competitors to help
 clients design powerful marketing strategies and tactics that deliver
 superior ROI. comScore services are used by more than 700 clients,
 including global leaders such as AOL, Microsoft, Yahoo!, BBC, Carat,
 Cyworld, Deutsche Bank, France Telecom, Best Buy, The Newspaper Association
 of America, Financial Times, ESPN, Fox Sports, Nestle, Starcom, Universal
 McCann, the United States Postal Service, Verizon, ViaMichelin, Merck and
 Expedia. For more information, please visit http://www.comscore.com.
 
 

SOURCE comScore