Industry news

Gartner: Youngsters buck internet trends

The majority of internet users surf the web for email and search websites, according to a new report.

Gartner has revealed that despite the huge growth in new applications including video and social networking, consumers' main reason when logging on is still to use email and gather information.

The analyst's survey of 4,770 internet users across 18 countries in the fourth quarter of 2007 found that the third reason was online banking, with the exception of emerging markets.

Video and photo sharing – like YouTube and Flickr – came fourth followed by geographic navigation services – such as Google Earth – and online shopping as fifth and sixth respectively.

It found one demographic group that defied these trends, as 13 to 18-year-olds enjoy the most diverse range of internet interests - ranging from downloading music and playing games online to blogging and social networks.

Elroy Jopling, research director at Gartner, said: "Rather than being considered as contrarians, this group should be regarded as the precursors of what is to come."

"The internet has become a utility for most consumers, who use it for communicating, gathering information and performing financial transactions.

"However, a new ‘trickle down’ phenomenon, where teenagers lead the evolution of consumer applications, heralds a new era where applications will mimic life - communicating, entertaining, socialising, informing, transactional, either in a fixed location or on the move," he concluded.