Top UK sites for kids and teenagers
- Added:
- Aug 15, 2008
Internet research firm Nielsen Online has revealed the websites that have the greatest affinity with Britons under 23 years of age.
The report shows that:
· Entertainment sites have the greatest affinity with under 12s
· Games sites are most popular amongst 12-17 year-olds
· Student and Video sites are the most visited for 18-22 year-olds
TV Broadcasters driving strong online affinity with children under 12
Fashion community site Stardoll has the highest percentage (32%) of children under 12 years old amongst its audience – making it the site with the greatest affinity with that age group.
Entertainment sites - including Nick, Cartoon Network, the BBC’s CBBC and CBeebies and Disney International - dominate the sites with the greatest affinity with children under 12.
Websites with the greatest percentage of under 12 audience
|
Rank |
Website |
% of UK Unique Audience Under 12 |
UK Unique Audience Under 12 (000s) |
Category |
|
1 |
Stardoll |
32% |
108 |
Targeted Portals & Communities |
|
2 |
Club Penguin |
29% |
196 |
Kids, Games, Toys |
|
3 |
Nick |
25% |
76 |
Kids, Games, Toys |
|
4 |
LEGO |
25% |
98 |
Kids, Games, Toys |
|
5 |
Cartoon Network |
24% |
107 |
Kids, Games, Toys |
|
6 |
BBC CBBC |
24% |
318 |
Kids, Games, Toys |
|
7 |
BBC CBeebies |
20% |
293 |
Kids, Games, Toys |
|
8 |
Disney International |
19% |
146 |
Multi-category Entertainment |
|
9 |
RuneScape |
16% |
87 |
Online Games |
|
10 |
MiniClip |
15% |
239 |
Online Games |
Source: Nielsen Online, UK NetView. E.g. 32% of Stardoll’s UK audience (108,000 people) are under 12 years old
Alex Burmaster, Internet Analyst, Nielsen Online, comments: “The Internet is very much an entertainment resource for young children, mainly due to how well TV broadcasters such as Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network, the BBC and Disney have adapted and extended their traditional offering to the web.”
Online games sites have the strongest affinity with 12-17 year-olds
Mobile phone social networking site Frengo has the highest percentage (26%) of 12-17 year-olds amongst its audience – making it the site with the greatest affinity with that age group.
Online games sites - including RuneScape, FreeOnlineGames, AddictingGames and MiniClip - dominate the sites with the greatest affinity with 12-17 year-olds.
Websites with the greatest percentage of 12–17 year-old audience
|
Rank |
Website |
% of UK Unique Audience 12-17 |
UK Unique Audience 12-17 (000s) |
Category |
|
1 |
Frengo |
26 |
117 |
Cellular/Paging |
|
2 |
RuneScape |
25 |
138 |
Online Games |
|
3 |
Bebo |
19 |
919 |
Member Communities |
|
4 |
BBC Learning 5-19 |
19 |
184 |
Educational resources |
|
5 |
FreeOnlineGames |
18 |
112 |
Online Games |
|
6 |
AddictingGames |
17 |
100 |
Online Games |
|
7 |
Metro Lyrics |
17 |
108 |
Music |
|
8 |
MiniClip |
15 |
240 |
Online Games |
|
9 |
LimeWire |
12 |
350 |
Internet Tools/Web Services |
|
10 |
Meebo |
12 |
87 |
Instant Messaging |
Source: Nielsen Online, UK NetView. E.g. 26% of Frengo’s UK audience (117,000 people) are 12-17 years old
“As children hit their teenage years, general entertainment sites tend to make way for games-focused sites, which offer a massive range of easily accessible games and ensure that teenage gaming activity extends far beyond the PS3, Wii and Xbox consoles.”
Sites with greatest concentration of young adults dominated by student and video sites
The three sites with the highest concentration of 18-22 year-olds (40%) are all student-related – the Student Loans Company, UCAS and Student Finance Direct
Sites offering video-related content – such as Sidereel, TV Links, Alluc and Youku – also feature heavily amongst sites with the greatest affinity with young adults
Websites with the greatest percentage of 18-22 year-old audience
|
Rank |
Website |
% of UK Unique Audience 18-22 |
UK Unique Audience 18-22 (000s) |
Category |
|
1 |
Student Loans Company |
40 |
45 |
Loans |
|
2 |
UCAS |
40 |
77 |
Educational Resources |
|
3 |
Student Finance Direct |
40 |
46 |
Loans |
|
4 |
Sidereel |
39 |
68 |
Videos/Movies |
|
5 |
TV-Links.cc |
38 |
67 |
Multi-category Entertainment |
|
6 |
Alluc.org |
37 |
92 |
Videos/Movies |
|
7 |
Spielen.de |
36 |
42 |
Online Games |
|
8 |
The Student Room |
35 |
79 |
Targeted Portals & Communities |
|
9 |
zSHARE |
35 |
77 |
Web Hosting |
|
10 |
Youku |
34 |
90 |
Videos/Movies |
Source: Nielsen Online, UK NetView. E.g. 40% of Student Loans Company’s UK audience (45,000 people) are 18-22 years old
“It’s interesting to see that the sites with the heaviest concentration of young adults split into two conflicting groups – functional and entertainment. This mirrors the uneasy transition of growing up from teenage years into adulthood and the associated increase in responsibility. Whilst entertainment, mainly through video sites, still has a place, this has been usurped by the need to investigate higher education and financing oneself through it,” Burmaster added.
Source: Nielsen Online
