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Instant Messaging Gap Forms Between Teens and Adults

7:30 am on December 16, 2006 | Category: Messaging, Web Services

A recent AP-AOL survey conducted by Knowledge Networks has confirmed that teenagers are still, by far, the biggest users of instant messaging technology.

About 48% of 13 to 18 year olds in the U.S. now use some kind of IM service, and 72% of them use instant messaging more than email. The same is true of only 26% of adult IM users.

The survey also found that more than 50% of teen instant messaging users send more than 25 messages a day, while around 20% send over 100. 30% of teen users also state that they canâ€™t imaging life without instant messaging, compared to 17% of the adult sample.

Around 20% of teen users have asked for or accepted a date over IM, while 16% have broken up with a someone.

All in all, these finding suggest that a major gap has formed, not only in the sheer percentages of teen and adult web surfers using instant messaging, but also in how they use it, and how it fits into their day-to-day lives.

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