Internet use among older people on the rise
The highest growth rates in Internet use are currently being seen among users aged 70 to 75. According to a press release, this is the finding of a recently published study by the Pew Internet and American Life Project.
The highest growth rates in internet usage are currently being recorded among 70- to 75-year-old users. According to the press release, this is the result of a recently published study by the Pew Internet and American Life Project. While only 26 percent of this age group were online in 2005, this figure has now risen to 45 percent.
In contrast to the predominantly younger users, older people tend to use the internet less for socializing and entertainment purposes. Instead, the focus is on activities such as searching for specific information, e-mail traffic and shopping on online shopping portals. Search queries on specific health topics are particularly popular, as the study showed. Health queries drive the 73-plus generation to the web just as much as the 18 to 32 age group. By contrast, this topic area is much less in demand among teenagers. Overall, however, there is also a clear upward trend among older users when it comes to entertainment offers. For example, 13% of 64 to 72-year-olds stated that they occasionally download video material from the Internet. This represents an increase of eight percent on the comparable figure from 2005.
In contrast to the predominantly younger users, older people tend to use the internet less for socializing and entertainment purposes. Instead, the focus is on activities such as searching for specific information, e-mail traffic and shopping on online shopping portals. Search queries on specific health topics are particularly popular, as the study showed. Health queries drive the 73-plus generation to the web just as much as the 18 to 32 age group. By contrast, this topic area is much less in demand among teenagers. Overall, however, there is also a clear upward trend among older users when it comes to entertainment offers. For example, 13% of 64 to 72-year-olds stated that they occasionally download video material from the Internet. This represents an increase of eight percent on the comparable figure from 2005.
