Silver Surfers make up 53% of new UK internet users
Nearly two million more UK residents accessed the internet during last year, according to a new report.
Almost a third of the online population is aged over 50, according to UKOM, the British online audience measurement service operated by Nielsen, with 1m new people in that age group coming online in the year to May 2010. Men accounted for about 722,000 of those new older web surfers.“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, analyst at Nielsen.
UKOM’s survey showed that the UK had gained 1.9 million new Internet users over the last year overall. Numbers of users have risen from 36.9 million in May 2009 to 38.8 million in May 2010. Silver surfers (older people that use the Internet) make up 53% of these new entrants with the over 50s totalling 1 million in the annual figures.
Of the 1 million new Internet users in the over 50 age bracket, there was evidence to show that men are more likely to start using the Internet than women. Men made up 38% (722,000) of the annual total whilst women made up 15% (284,000).
The over 50s now hold a 31% share of the Internet user market in the country. According to this research older people are now more likely to use sites in a variety of areas. Popular sectors include travel, health, genealogy, fashion, cooking and greeting cards.
