Teens finally catching the Twitter-bug

September 2009

Despite its notable popularity amongst older users, the number of youngsters
accessing Twitter is growing at "breakneck pace", according to new research.
According to a new blog post from Andrew Lipsman, director of industry
analysis at comScore, there are now 21 million Twitter users in the US, with
a notable rise in new users under 18. "The most notable positive shifts are
evident among the 12-17 and 18-24 year old segments, which are coming at the
expense of the 35+ segments," Lipsman said.

This follows recent research from Nielsen Online that just 16% of Twitter
users are under 25, indicating the micro-blogging service lacks appeal to
the younger generation.

However, these new figures indicate the service is beginning to gain
traction amongst teens. Lipsman attributes some of this growth to celebrity
endorsement from the like of Ashton Kutcher, who recently beat CNN to be the
first Twitter account owner to get 1 million followers. Kutcher now has 3.4
million followers.

Lipsman wrote: "This event raised Twitter's profile even further, which
attracted more and more celebrities to the phenomenon, which, in turn,
attracted even more young users, creating a virtuous cycle. Very quickly,
younger users had gone from being the clear minority to challenging for the
majority."

Lipsman added that Teens are now "fueling (Twitter's) continued growth and
pushing it ever closer to achieving critical mass. If that happens, it will
be the first example I can think of where the younger demographics were not
the critical early adopters of a new Internet technology yet still played a
vital role in its adoption curve. But it won't be the last."

Source: Digital Intelligence: www.DigitalStrategyConsulting.com
<http://www.digitalstrategyconsulting.com/>