NBC Local Media Sites Mark Anniversary, Report Strong Growth

NBC Local Media’s 10 “Locals Only” websites have doubled their unique visitors and nearly quadrupled page views since relaunching last November, the division of NBC Universal reports.

Unique visitors went from 6 million a year ago to 12 million in October, while page views grew to 113 million from 29 million in the same time frame, the company says.

In a prepared statement, Brian Buchwald, executive vice president of Local Integrated Media, said, “We made the decision to take a more city-centric approach with the NBC ‘Locals Only’ sites, and we’re encouraged by the tremendous response we’ve seen over the past year.”

An increased focus on social media may have helped fuel growth. NBC Local Media reports that, on average, “10,000 votes are cast each day on the sites’ ‘mood rating’ function, where consumers weigh in on how the content makes them feel – ‘thrilled,’ ‘furious,’ ‘intrigued’ or ‘sad.’”

Also, since their launch four weeks ago, the sites’ 10 iPhone applications have generated 75,000 downloads.

NBC Local Media relaunched the 10 sites one year ago, moving from traditional television station websites to broader, city-centric destinations. The Locals Only sites are:

WMAQ: nbcchicago.com
KNBC: nbclosangeles.com
KNSD: nbcsandiego.com
KNTV: nbcbayarea.com
KXAS: nbcdfw.com
WCAU: nbcphiladelphia.com
WRC: nbcwashington.com
WVIT: nbcconnecticut.com
WNBC: nbcnewyork.com

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