Interest in Alternative Fuel Sources Rising as Gas Prices Escalate

NEW YORK--May 18, 2006--As the average national gas price approaches three dollars per gallon for the second time since September 2005, consumers are turning to the Internet to research alternative fuel options such as ethanol and biodiesel.

According to Hitwise, the leading online competitive intelligence service, the share of US Internet searches for the term 'ethanol' was up 212 percent for the four weeks ending May 13, 2006 versus the four weeks ending April 15, 2006. Additionally, the share of searches for 'biodiesel' was up 100 percent in that same period.

In the month of April 2006, the market share of visits to the government site FuelEconomy.gov were up 115 percent over March 2006, and visits to the American Coalition for Ethanol site and the US Department of Energy's Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy site were up 96 percent and 78 percent respectively.

"When pump prices surge, we see a corresponding jump in searches for 'gas prices' as well as alternate fuel sources such as 'biodiesel,' which was popular when gas prices breached $3.00 a gallon last September," said Bill Tancer, general manager of research at Hitwise. "But this year, with the increased attention given to ethanol as an alternate fuel source, we see it overtaking 'biodiesel' as gas prices continue to rise."

Hitwise demographic data, in conjunction with Claritas PRIZM NE segmentation, shows that 50 percent of visitors to the US Department of Energy's Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy site were from segments in the Town & Country social groups. The Town & Country segments are comprised of residents of rural areas and small towns throughout the nation, and comprise 37 percent of the US online population. Residents of rural areas typically have longer commutes to work, schools, and shopping areas than urban and suburban residents, thus showing a greater propensity to research alternative fuels.

HYBRID CARS AND GAS WATCH WEBSITES

Car manufacturers Toyota and Honda could be a beneficiary of the rising gas prices. The Toyota website has experienced an increase in market share of visits by 42 percent overall and the Honda Automobiles website by 19 percent, comparing April 2006 to January 2006. Both car manufacturers' hybrid models could be a factor in driving traffic to the site.

Hitwise data shows that the number of visits to the Gas Price Alert website and Gas Buddy website increased 432 percent and 417 percent respectively comparing the week ending April 29 versus the week ending April 1. Overall, the Gas Buddy website has received more than 25 percent of the traffic from searches on the term 'gas prices' for the four weeks ending May 13, 2006.

For more on Gas Prices and how Internet Search behavior is affected by rising gas costs please visit our blog: http://weblogs.hitwise.com/bill-tancer/2006/05/gas_prices_redux.html

(212) 380 2939.

About Hitwise:

Hitwise is the leading online competitive intelligence service. Each day, Hitwise monitors how more than 25 million Internet users interact with over 500,000 websites across 160 industry categories.

By monitoring more people, more websites, more often, Hitwise provides marketers with timely and actionable marketing insights on how their online presence compares to competitive websites. Companies use this information to maximize the return on their online investment, in efforts such as affiliate programs, search marketing, online advertising, content development and lead generation.

Hitwise collects Internet usage information via a combination of ISP data partnerships and opt-in panels, and complies with local and international privacy legislation as audited by PricewaterhouseCoopers. Founded in 1997, Hitwise is a privately held company, headquartered in New York City and operates in the US, UK, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong and Singapore.

More information about the Hitwise Competitive Intelligence service is available at www.hitwise.com.

For up to date analysis on online trends, please visit the Hitwise Intelligence-Analyst Weblogs at weblogs.hitwise.com