Industry's First European Consortium for Online Research

At the Technovate conference hosted by ESOMAR this week, NOP World, MORI, NFO Europe and SPSS MR have announced the creation of ECOR (European Consortium for Online Research) to shape the future of online research in Europe.

By joining forces, the partners in the consortium hope to stimulate the growth of online research and expedite its adoption in Europe. A host of other companies have been invited to join ECOR and are currently considering participation. According to Honomichl's 'Inside Research,' the development of online research in Europe trails the U.S. by three years, with the U.S. market reaching nearly $500 million in 2002. NOP World, MORI, NFO Europe and SPSS MR have, therefore, recognized the opportunity to establish strong leadership in Europe from the beginning and have created ECOR as a springboard to facilitate the potential exponential growth of the European market.

'By joining forces with industry leaders, we believe ECOR will create an environment for member companies to test and refine online sampling methodology within select European markets,' said Ian Durrell, president of SPSS MR. 'This initiative is significant to the industry as we pave the way for online sampling on an international level and create the perfect environment to collaborate on new online research approaches,' said Mike Cooke, Director of NOP World Brand Development.

Martin Oxley, Managing Director - NFO Europe Interactive stated 'We are always on the lookout for any initiative that provides us with an opportunity to better address our client's needs. We are particularly excited in supporting the objectives of ECOR since it focuses on the thorny issue of online sampling'. Dr Ben Booth, MORI Group IT Director added, 'MORI is enthusiastic about the potential for online research and welcomes the opportunity to work with SPSS MR and other agencies to better understand this medium and develop and define robust and valid methodologies for its application.'

Additional information about ECOR may be found at www.onlineresearch.org

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas unless otherwise stated.

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