Tech Giants Dominate Comscore’s March 2021 Site Ranking For India; Paytm Leads Among Startups

In the Indian digital ecosystem, US based tech giants Google and Facebook dominate the space clocking 463 Mn and 438.5 Mn unique visitors respectively in the month of March 2021, according to India Comscore Rankings, a media reach measurement company, across multiple platforms.

The study which covered top 10 multi-platform digital properties across desktop and mobile found that Google sites topped the chart with a reach of 99% and Facebook following at slow pace at 93.7% reach. Times Internet Limited stands at number three with 357 Mn unique visitors and 76.3% reach.

Google sites include Gmail, Google Drive and Workspaces, while Facebook properties include social media and communication platforms like Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram. Times Internet properties include popular websites like CricBuzz.com, Gaana.com, MagicBricks.com among many others, besides its publications. 

Websites of ecommerce platforms Amazon India and Flipkart came in at fourth and fifth positions respectively with 335 Mn and 250 Mn unique visitors during the month. In terms of reach, Amazon is far ahead of Flipkart with 71.6% reach, compared to just 53.6% reach for the Walmart-owned company.

Fintech unicorn Paytm came in at the seventh position 42.6% reach (199 Mn unique visitors) Mukesh Ambani led Reliance Jio Digital Services (193 Mn unique visitors) ranked ninth with 41% reach in India. 

These numbers are expected to change rapidly as a number of states imposed movement restrictions in April as the second wave of Covid-19 pandemic hit the country. These lockdowns and restrictions limit ecommerce platforms to delivery of essential products only. Typically, travel and sports websites are the most affected due to cancellation of events. However, as the Indian Premier League started in April 2021, it is likely to boost viewer engagement across digital platforms. In addition, elections across multiple states and the frantic search for medical resources is likely to impact the numbers in April.