The latest data from Ipsos Iris has revealed a surge in online audience for Australian news outlets driven by a series of breaking local and global news events.

Major news events such as the Westfield Bondi Junction and Western Sydney church stabbings saw Sydney-based news outlets The Sydney Morning Herald and The Daily Telegraph record online audience increases of around 1 million - their highest ever since Ipsos Iris was launched in 2023.

Other significant news events included the Bruce Lehrmann defamation verdict, the death of Seven Network Sunrise reporter Nathan Templeton, the Iran drone attack on Israel, and health updates on King Charles and Kate Middleton. More than 20.7 million people used a news website or app in April, reaching 96.6% of online Australians aged 14. Overall, 21.5 million Australians aged 14 and older used the internet in April, spending on average 4.5 hours per day, or almost 137 hours in the month, online.

The most consumed website and app categories were search engines, social networking, technology, retail and commerce, and entertainment. The gaming category saw a rise of 2.7% compared to the previous month, equating to almost 16.6 million Australians aged 14+. Men aged 14 to 24 drove the increase in games app and website usage, up 10.2% compared to March. Other groups with significant increases in games app and website usage were men aged 65 and older, rising by 9.1%, and women aged 40-54, up 7.3%.

New.com.au held the top spot as the most visited news site in April, with an audience of 12.4 million, followed by ABC News with 12.3 million and nine.com.au with 10.6 million. 

“In one of their darkest times, Australians turned to us for updates as they struggled to understand the horror that was unfolding. We saw a spike in readers coming directly to our homepage, as our reporters and editors worked around the clock to ensure every angle was covered and Australians were informed," said News.com.au Editor, Kerry Warren.

Meanwhile, Seven West Media's newest digital product, The Nightly, has been going steadily since its launch earlier this year. The website had an audience of 1.8 million in April, up 107% since launch. 

"This is a brilliant start but it's only the beginning for The Nightly," said architect of The Nightly, Seven Network Director of News and Current Affairs and Seven West Media Editor-In-Chief, Anthony de Ceglie.

Ipsos iris, launched in March 2023, provides accurate data about the 20.7 million Australians aged 14+ who access digital content and services across smartphone, PC/laptop and tablet devices.

In February 2024, the CTV audience currency integration from a data partnership with OzTAM launched, providing total unduplicated digital audience currency data for CTV, smartphones, tablets, and computers.