Here are some interesting stats to wrap up the week. comScore Media Metrix today announced the top 50 U.S. Internet properties for the month of August 2003, and as expected, the data shows that while the number of active Internet users increased slightly in August compared to July to 148.8 million unique users, the total amount of time spent online decreased by approximately 7% to 26.5 hours per visitor. comScore says that's likely because everyone was on vacation in August and also because the Northeast blackout kept people offline for a few days.

In August, there were six new entrants to the Top 50 Properties ranking. Leading virus protection providers Symantec and McAfee.com both broke into the top 50 in response to the SoBig and Blaster outbreak, with 29 million and 11 million unique visitors respectively. The traffic spikes driven by SoBig and Blaster were strong enough to be felt even at the category level in both the Computer Software and Technology - News categories, which grew faster than all other categories in August.

Not surprisingly, the start of the school year in August influenced a broad range of online information-seeking and shopping activities. Many leading Apparel retailers, such as Kohls, Foot Locker, Otto Gruppe (which owns Spiegel and Eddie Bauer), Gap and JCPenney, saw major increases in traffic levels as back-to-school shoppers browsed and bought new fall fashions.

Students' need for diverse technology products from MP3 players to digital cameras to PCs brought more consumers to Computer Hardware and Consumer Electronics sites, including big box retailers such as Best Buy and Circuit City and direct marketers Gateway and Hewlett Packard. And families shopping for furniture and housewares at Sears, Ikea, Pottery Barn and Crate and Barrel helped drive the Home Furnishings category up 28% from July.

Also, with the kick-off of the NFL season, NFL Internet Group saw its ranking rise from 114 in July to 49 in August.