Yahoo!7 announces Most Popular Searches of 2010

Australians still searching for the celebrity hype

Sydney, Australia, 1 December, 2010 - Yahoo!7’s annual Most Popular Searches, which tracks the searches on Yahoo!7 Search made by Australians during 2010, has revealed Australia’s ongoing obsession with pop culture with six out of the top 10 overall searches dominated by celebrities.

Lady Gaga tops the list as the most searched celebrity with Justin Bieber, Lindsay Lohan, Kim Kardashian, Rihanna and Megan Fox also in the top 10. Britney Spears who previously dominated the Most Popular Searches has been knocked off the top search results for the first time in years, failing to even make an appearance in the top 10.

Some of the biggest events of the year were also highlighted, with the World Cup and Australia’s Federal Election finding their way into the overall most searched terms, along with consumer gadgets iPhone4/iPad and the devastating oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

In the news category, Australia’s Federal Election which resulted in the nation’s first hung parliament was the most popular news search, but the search trends also reflected interest in news abroad as information was sought about Haiti earthquake, Chilean miners and the Icelandic volcano.

The Most Popular Searches also records Australia’s sport related searches. Soccer fever gripped the nation during the World Cup as did the Commonwealth Games and more controversial sporting scandals surrounding Tiger Woods, Brendan Fevola and the Melbourne Storm salary cap breach.

The Most Popular Searches highlights the top trends, topics and stories from Australians’ searches on Yahoo!7 Search. To create the Most Popular Searches, Yahoo!7 analyses search queries based on absolute volume and growth versus previous periods.

Most Popular Searcheson Yahoo!7 in 2010

1.    Lady Gaga

2.    World Cup

3.    Justin Bieber

4.    IPhone 4/iPad

5.    Federal Election 2010

6.    Lindsay Lohan

7.    Kim Kardashian

8.    Rihanna

9.    Oil Spill

10.  Megan Fox

For more search results, please go to the Most Popular Searches 2010 web site: yahoo7.com.au/search-2010.

Yahoo!7 last week also launched an interactive search trivia game - Sports Trivia Challenge.  Australians can test their sport knowledge by going to trivia.yahoo.com.au.

ends

For further information please call or email:

Amanda Millar Communications and Trade Marketing Manager, Yahoo!7 tel: 02 8288 4758 mob: 0407454229 email: millaram@yahoo-inc.com

Tamara Jawad Text 100 Sydney tel: 02 8923 9523 mob: 0405 463 045 email: tamara.jawad@text100.com.au

About Yahoo!7

Yahoo!7 (yahoo7.com.au) is one of the most comprehensive and engaging online destinations for Australian consumers and advertisers.  Formed as a 50-50 partnership between the Seven Network Limited (ASX: SEV) and Yahoo! Inc. (Nasdaq: YHOO), Yahoo!7 brings together the successful Australian internet business, Yahoo! Australia & NZ, and the online assets and television and magazine content of the Seven Network, one of Australia’s leading media companies. The company also combines the strengths of Yahoo! search and communications capabilities and its global internet network, with Seven’s rich media and entertainment content and marketing capabilities.