“Silver surfers” swell UK internet ranks

LONDON: The internet has attracted nearly two million extra users in the UK in the last 12 months, with more than half this audience coming in at over 50 years of age.

According to a study by UKOM, the measurement service operated by Nielsen, "silver surfers" now account for a 31% share of the country's web population.

Although members of this demographic are often enthusiastic adopters of online services, they tend to display different priorities than those shown by their younger counterparts.

Popular activities among older netizens include travel, health, genealogy, fashion, cooking and greeting cards, while music and film are less important.

While the UKOM report showed clear indications that the net is of universal appeal, men in the 50-plus age group tend to be more drawn to this channel than women.

In all, the number of internet users in the UK rose from 36.9 million in May 2009 to 38.8 million in May 2010.

"The fact that one in four Britons who use the internet today are 50 to 64 years old proves it is no longer the sole preserve of the young and technical literati,” said Alex Burmaster, an analyst at Nielsen.

Data sourced from the Retail Bulletin.com; additional content by Warc staff, 06 July 2010

Posted on Jul 08, 2010 - 04:19 AM


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