Online Video Watching up 11% in March

According to ComScore’s Video Metrix service, online video viewing increased 11% between February 2009 and March 2009. U.S. Internet users watched some 14.5 billion online videos, mostly on Google Sites, which captured 40.9% of the market due to the continued strength of YouTube. The second most popular video property was Fox Interactive Media with 3.0% market share.Hulu made a big leap into the top three, capturing 2.6% market share, followed by Yahoo! Sites with 2.3% market share.

ComScore also reports that in March, U.S. Internet users watched an average of 97 videos per person. By comScore’s estimates, that adds up to five-and-a-half hours spent watching videos per person per month. That’s a lot of videos and a lot of time spent watching them. As videos become more popular, it’ll be interesting to see the inevitable productivity statistics that accompany increased watching. I, for one, know that I’d be more productive if YouTube wasn’t an option…