Fastest Growing Internet Users are Ages 70 to 75 as
Online Demographics Get Older
Forty-five percent of these senior citizens are now
online, most with broadband capability
Feb. 6, 2009 – The charge to the Internet for
senior citizens is being led by those in the 70-75 year-old age group,
according to a new report from the Pew Internet & American Life Project,
that says this age group has increased internet use more than any other
since 2005.
While just over one-fourth (26%) of 70-75 year olds
were online in 2005, 45% of that age group is currently online.
The web continues to be populated largely by
younger generations, as more than half of the adult internet population
is between 18 and 44 years old., But larger percentages of older
generations are online now than in the past and they are doing more
activities online, according to the analysis based on surveys taken from
2006-2008.
Instant messaging, social networking, and blogging
have gained ground as communications tools, according to Pew, but email
remains the most popular online activity, particularly among older
internet users.
Fully 74% of internet users age 64 and older send
and receive email, making email the most popular online activity for
this age group. At the same time, email has lost some ground among
teens; whereas 89% of teens said they used email in 2004, just 73%
currently say they do. Some teens might point out that this is proof
that email is for old people, according to Pew
Following are the age groups used by Pew with the
included ages inside the brackets: Gen Y (18-32), Gen X (33-44), Younger
Boomers (45-54), Older Boomers (55-63), Silent Generation (64-72) and
the G.I. Generation (73+). Following are more of the highlights from the
report.
Video downloads, travel reservations and
work-related research now pursued more equally by young and old
“A few online activities previously dominated by
either older generations or younger generations are now being done more
equally across all generations under 73 years old.
“One such activity is downloading videos, an
activity that in 2005 was significantly more popular with teens and
Generation Y than with any other generation. Generation X is catching
up, as 31% of that generation claim to download videos as of 2007,
compared with 38% of Generation Y.
“Generations on the oldest end of the spectrum also
became significantly more likely than they had been two years before to
download videos. Some 13% of G.I. Generation internet users (age 73+)
reported downloading videos, up from 1% in 2005, and another 13% of the
online Silent Generation (ages 64-72) say they download videos, up from
8% in 2005.
“Perhaps less surprisingly, Generation Y is also
gaining significant ground in some activities previously dominated by
Generation X and older. In addition to becoming more likely to do
banking online, Generation Y has also grown more likely to make travel
reservations online. In 2005, half (50%) of Generation Y internet users
had booked travel arrangements online and in 2008 that number rose to
65%. During the same period, the percentages of Generation X and older
generations to make online travel reservations remained about the same.
“The workplace online network is expanding to
include more Generation Y users. Internet users 18-32 are going online
more than ever to do research for their jobs. In 2007, 51% said they
used the internet for their jobs other than for email, compared with 44%
of the same group in 2005.
Older generations use the internet as a tool for
research, shopping and banking
“Compared with teens and Generation Y, older
generations use the internet less for socializing and entertainment and
more as a tool for information searches, emailing, and buying products.
In particular, older internet users are significantly more likely than
younger generations to look online for health information. Health
questions drive internet users age 73 and older to the internet just as
frequently as they drive Generation Y users, outpacing teens by a
significant margin. Researching health information is the third most
popular online activity with the most senior age group, after email and
online search.
Broadband access tripled in oldest groups
“Since 2005, broadband access has increased
dramatically in the United States across all age groups, but older
groups are still largely unconnected to high-speed internet. For
Americans ages 12-24, broadband access has increased by about half; for
25-64 year olds, it has about doubled; and for seniors 65 and older,
broadband access has more than tripled. The percentage of the oldest age
group to have broadband at home is still very low, however, at just 16%.
”Always-on, high-speed connections make it more
convenient for internet users to participate in online activities, and
broadband users are significantly more likely than dial-up users to do
almost all major online activities.6 When looking at internet users who
go online from home in 2008, broadband is more equally accessed by all
age groups; 70% of home internet users older than 75 years old have
high-speed access.
“As broadband access continues to increase for all
age groups, perhaps we will see increased internet activity,
particularly among the trailing older generations.
Source: “Generations Online in 2009,” by Sydney
Jones, Research Assistant and Susannah Fox, Associate Director, Pew
Internet & American Life Project, January 28, 2009
Feb. 6, 2009 – The charge to the Internet for
senior citizens is being led by those in the 70-75 year-old age group,
according to a new report from the Pew Internet & American Life Project,
that says this age group has increased internet use more than any other
since 2005.
