In the last year two million more people in the UK have joined the on-line community, over half of who are over-50 according to the BBC.
Research from the UK Online Measurement Agency found that the number of people online in the UK jumped in the last twelve months from 36.9 Million to 38.8 Million. The majority of these newbies were over 50 with more men joining than women.
“The internet is getting older in more ways than one. Not only is the medium itself maturing but the audience is shifting towards older age groups,” said Alex Burmaster, speaking on behalf of UKOM.
Over 50’s now account for 31% of Internet users in the UK and it’s widely considered an excellent way to keep in touch and feel connected to society. The British government has done a great deal in recent years to try and encourage this age-group to get online with free courses.
According to the research…
Over-50s account for 31% of the UK net audience. Men over 50 accounted for 38% of the 1.9 million new surfers. Women over 50 accounted for 15%, women aged 21-34 for 14%, while girls aged 12-20 made up 12% of the total.
Some of the websites apparently most popular with the over-50’s are health, travel and community sites.
