For an understanding of why publishers are throwing billions of dollars at online businesses this year you need look no further than the Pew Internet & American Life Project study, Teens and Technology.
The report tells us that 87% of those between the ages of 12 and 17 are online; they play games, get news, communicate; email is more for communicating with adults; instant messaging is the way to communicate.
The 57 page report contains valuable information for anyone in a business trying to reach the younger demographic. It will help you understand how they are using the Net. It also goes some way to explaining the new language and the accompanying desire for shorthand communication. This impacts how they access news and information. Whereas a generation back people would take the time to read a story, this generation is growing up on truncated sentences and part words.
The language of reporting news and information will need to change to reflect what the generation is using itself so that the product of the news and information services is accessible.
Okay so TV, Radio and print news services will not switch to instant messaging (SMS) type text messages. However, they will embrace it somehow to connect with the demographic – if they want to access the advertising potential of the group.
“The Pew Internet & American Life Project produces reports that explore the impact of the Internet on families, communities, work and home, daily life, education, health care, and civic and political life. The Project aims to be an authoritative source on the evolution of the Internet through collection of data and analysis of real-world developments as they affect the virtual world.” … from their mission statement to provide perspective for their study.