Britney loses out to PlayStation

Britney: Remains the web's most wanted pop idol

Sony's PlayStation 2 console is more popular with surfers than Britney Spears, according to search engine Yahoo.

The black games console emerged top in 2002 in Yahoo's Buzz Index, which rates the popularity of search terms used throughout the year.

The top 10 is dominated by film, music and celebrities, a sign that young people tend to be the most active web searchers.

Experts say the words entered into search engines can help track, and even predict, fads and fashions before they become part of the mainstream.

Animation rules

With more than 40 million consoles sold worldwide, it is hardly surprising that the PlayStation 2 is the most wanted search item on the web.

Yahoo's Buzz List 2002

1: PlayStation 2

2: Britney Spears

3: Dragon Ball Z

4: Kazaa

5: Eminem

6: WWE

7: Morpheus

8: Internal Revenue Service

9: Jennifer Lopez

10: Harry Potter

Britney can console herself with remaining the most wanted pop idol on the web, beating off competition from upstarts like Shakira and Avril Lavigne.

The third most popular search term on Yahoo, Dragonball, may be unknown to many, but it reflects the continuing lure of Japanese animation.

Dragonball is an anime or cartoon series which first ran in Japan in 1984. More than 500 episodes of the series have been produced and it has spawned a comic, video game and action figures.

One of the top subjects of the past couple of years, Napster, has dropped off the radar.

But this does not mean that surfers have lost their taste for unauthorised music files, with file-swapping programs Kazaa and Morpheus among the top search terms.

Superhero attack

The coming year on the web looks like been dominated by big budget films due for release in 2003.

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Long-awaited sequels, the Matrix Reloaded and Terminator 3, are expected to leap into the top search terms on the web.

The interest in movies based on comic book superheroes looks to continue in 2003, with the release of The Hulk movie starring Eric Bana, and Daredevil, featuring Jennifer Garner of the TV series Alias.

And Britney Spears can expect another good year on the web according to Yahoo's Buzz List.

But she can expect tough competition for the top spot from Jennifer Lopez, Shania Twain and rising Russian popstars Tatu.