The youth-obsessed tech world figures out that older people use computers,too
By Matt Richtel
New York Times
SAN FRANCISCO >> Older people are sticky.
That is the latest view from Silicon Valley. Technology investors and entrepreneurs, long obsessed with connecting to teenagers and 20-somethings, are starting a host of new social networking sites aimed at baby boomers and older people.
The sites have names like Eons, Rezoom, Multiply, Maya’s Mom, Boomj and Boomertown. They look like Facebook - with wrinkles.
And they are seeking to capitalize on what investors say could be a profitable characteristic of older Internet users: They are less likely than youngsters to flit from one trendy site to the next.
“Teens are tire kickers - they hang around, cost you money and then leave,” said Paul Kedrosky, a venture capitalist and author of the blog “Infectious Greed.” “The older demographic has a bunch of interesting characteristics, not the least of which is that they hang around.”
This prospective and relative stickiness is helping drive a wave of new investment into boomer and older-oriented social networking sites that offer like-minded (and like-aged) individuals discussion and dating forums, photo-sharing, news and commentary, and chatter about diet, fitness and health care.
Last week, Vantage Point Ventures, an early investor in MySpace, said that it had led a $16.5 million round of financing for Multiply, a social networking site aimed at people who are settled, not searching.
In August, Shasta Ventures led a $4.8 million financing round for TeeBeeDee, a site coming out of its test stage this month. The name is short for “To Be Determined” (as in: just because you’re not trolling for a mate on MySpace doesn’t mean your life is over).
Also in August, Johnson & Johnson spent $10 million to $20 million to acquire Maya’s Mom, a social networking site for parents.
The investment makes sense: There are 78 million boomers - roughly three times the number of teenagers - and most of them are Internet users who learned computer skills in the workplace. Indeed, the number of Internet users who are older than 55 is roughly the same as those who are ages 18 to 34, according to Nielsen/NetRatings, a market research firm.
Some of the older users being attracted to the sites say the experience feels more comfortable to them than when they tried My-Space, Facebook or Friendster.
“I’ve discussed my divorce, my medical issues, and when do I dare go dating again,” said Martha Starks, 52, a retired optician in Tucson, who spends an hour or two each evening on a site called Eons. “I sure would-n’t discuss that stuff with a 20-year-old.”