Teens - love the web, but not blogging or twitter

Couple different articles on the PEW Research's latest look at online teens. My out take - most people are consumers, rather than creators (hence the blog stats levelling out) and they still want all the content that sits outside the social web, but they want to be able to choose when and where they get it i.e. mobile, social site integration, etc. And twitter... well to me it just feels a little too restrictive, and one sided, for what teenagers what from digital interaction. Thoughts?

First the Guardian's POV:
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Teens prefer reading news online to Twitter

While most teenagers reject Twitter and blogging, 62% of them like to read their news online, US research reveals

Will the next generation read news reports? It looks like it. Some 62% of US internet users aged 12 to 17 are going online for news and political information or find out about current events, said a study conducted by the Pew Research Center published yesterday. During special events such as general elections news consumption rose to 77%.

This is indeed an impressive number, even more so if you compare it with the 73% of teens who use social networking websites or the 89% of boys and 70% of girls who report they have a game console.

It also stands up well compared with the 72% of adult internet users who get their news online, a number that has held fairly constant since 2002 according to Pew. In general, it says the use of online news has increased dramatically since its first analysis, in 2000, when it found just 35% of online adults were reading political news online.

As was expected in all age groups educational attainment and income are positively correlated with getting news online: 81% of college educated internet users get their news online, a figure that drops to 59% with a lower education.

Blogging isn't mainstream, social networking is

Blogging, on the other hand, may become more and more of a side issue. In fact, among all the content creating activities the decline in blogging among teens and young adults is striking as it looks like the youth may be exchanging "macro-blogging" for microblogging with status updates. Since 2006 blogging among teens has dropped from 28% to 14% and among young adults (aged 18 to 29) by 24% to 15%. Some 11% of those aged 30 and over now maintain a personal blog, and 14% of them maintain a personal website.

According to the research, 26% of adults post comments online, a while 30% share online content. Teens on the other hand are enthusiastic online commenters within the social networks. A massive 86% of social networking teens post comments to a friend's page or wall on a social network site and 83% post comments on friends' photos posted to an online social network.

They don't really like to use Twitter, though. While 19% of adult internet users use Twitter or similar services to post short status updates and view those of others, only 8% of 12- to 17-year-olds do so.

Young adults lead the way when it comes to using Twitter or status updates as a third of 18- to 29-year-olds post or read status updates, and they are also the only age group which prefers to use laptop computers to desktop computers.

Mobile internet access is becoming more important

However, the study found out that access to the internet is changing in general. Teens and adults no longer access the internet solely from a computer or laptop but now go online via portable devices such as mobile phones or game consoles as mobile access to the internet becomes more and more important.

And finally some more background figures: 75% of teens and 93% of adults aged 18 to 29 now have a mobile phone. Some 93% of teens aged 12 to 17 go online, as do 93% of young adults aged 18 to 29, and even an impressive 74% of all adults aged 18 and older. Among them, Facebook is currently the most commonly‐used online social network as 73% of online adults have a Facebook profile. More than half of them say they have two or more different profiles.

So what do these figures say, apart from the fact that teenagers obviously like to read the news?

Conclusion

Mobile access to the internet is on the rise, and the reading of news on the platform is likely to follow this development. Offerings such as the New York Times's Times People or the HuffingtonFacebook are likely to become more common to encourage young people to share articles and debate with their friends. Post's deep integration of

That might be a reason why social networking sites such as Facebook are taking over from blogging – as it appears that blogging has levelled out at a figure of about 15% of internet users.

Pew Internet drew data from a survey conducted in the second half of 2009 among 800 young people aged between 12 and 17, and compared these figures with previous research.


And now from Mashable
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Teens Just Don’t Blog or Tweet [STATS]

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A new study published today by Pew Internet finds that teens and young adults are blogging less and using social networking sites more, with the prominent exception of Twitter.

Pew’s Report surveyed 2,253 American adults and 800 U.S. teens to get a reading of how they use the Internet, which gadgets they own, and which social media tools they use the most.

Some of the data will surprise you.

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The Internet’s Everywhere

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Here’s a no-brainer: Young adults use the web far more than older adults. In its study, Pew found that 93% of teens and young adults go online, compared to only 38% of adults over 65 years of age. It surprises us that 7% of 12-29 year olds still don’t browse the web, but some just don’t have or can’t afford access.

Among those teens going online, 63% say they go online at least once a day, with older teens more likely to go online than younger teens.

Most are connecting with high-speed connections as well. Seventy-six percent of families with teenage children have broadband connections, while 10% still use dial-up, 8% have no computer and 4% have a computer but no Internet access. For comparison, 49% of families used dial-up in 2004.

The Internet’s getting faster and more accessible. As computer prices drop and Internet access becomes more readily available, we should see these Internet usage numbers continue to rise.

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The Laptop Is More Popular than the Desktop

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In terms of gadgets, more teenagers have cell phones (76%) than a computer (69%). More than half of 12 year olds own a mobile phone, while a rather impressive 83% of teenagers carry a cell phone in their pockets. That number only rises with age — a full 93% of 18-29 year olds own a cell phone.

The mobile trend even continues into the computing realm: Laptops have overtaken the desktop for those under 30. Sixty-sex percent of adults 18-29 own a laptop, while 53% own a desktop. Other interesting trends: Males are more likely to own a cell phone, income dramatically affects computer ownership but not cell phone ownership, and race is a non-factor when it comes to the percentage of adults using cell phones.

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Teens Just Don’t Blog. Or Tweet.

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As you might have guessed, Pew found that teens are avid social networkers: 73% of 12-17 year olds, in fact. They are posting pictures, commenting on status updates and sending IMs.

What they aren’t doing much of, though, is blogging and tweeting.

Pew’s study finds that blogging has dramatically decreased in popularity with the younger crowed since 2006, where 28% of teens reported that they were bloggers. Now that number has dropped to just 14%. Interestingly enough, lower income households (under $50,000) report more blogging than higher income ones. With Facebook (), Twitter () and other social tools to keep your friends updated about your life, blogging just isn’t as necessary.

Perhaps we shouldn’t include Twitter in that list of social media tools teens use, though. As we’ve reported on multiple occasions, teens don’t tweet, and Pew’s numbers don’t disagree with that assertion:

Yes, only 8% of teens use Twitter, remarkably small when compared to most social networks. Only one in 10 high schoolers use Twitter. Among this small group though, the girls are more likely to be microblogging: 13% of 14-17 year old girls reported using the service.

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Conclusions: Teens Aren’t Heavy Content Creators

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First, it’s important to note that most of this data was taken from September 2009. A lot changes in social media in a five-month period.

With that said, though, the trends seem clear: Teens love to be online, but they’re not terribly interested in writing blog posts or maintaining a stream of tweets. Creating content takes time and energy that they’d rather exert on Facebook, texting, YouTube () or other online activities. And of course, they have school and friends.

Let’s face it: Teenagers haven’t had the time to build up expertise, life experiences or a career that would merit content creation. Without that expertise, fewer people are inclined to listen to what they have to say, and without that knowledge, teenagers have less to talk about.

As my colleague Barb Dybwad also brings up, a teenager’s social circle is far smaller and more closely defined than an adult’s network. Perhaps this is why more closed networks like Facebook are more appealing to teenagers than Twitter, which is a completely public experience. Blogging was a more intimate experience a few years back, which could also explain why more teens have abandoned personal blogs over the last few years.

Combined, it means that Twitter just might not be for the average teenager. Let us know what you think in the comments.

Answers to Questions from Twitter on Teen Practices

Thanks Futurelab for this Q&A on teen Twitter usage and attitudes

by: danah boyd

Before I headed to Atlanta to do fieldwork, I asked folks who follow me on Twitter (@zephoria) what questions I should ask teens. Many of the questions that I received were more general questions about teens, rather than questions for teens. Still, I'm going to take a stab at very briefly answering some of the questions that I received based on what I know and what I learned. I am not answering the larger questions that would require pages and pages and my apologies if my short answers are not sufficient but I wanted to at least respond. Thank you all who contributed questions and my apologies if I didn't answer yours.

To all who asked questions about Twitter: average teens don't use Twitter. They may in the future, but they do not now. Those who do are early adopters and not representative of any mainstream teen practice. Because of Oprah and celebs, some teens are starting to hear about it, but they don't understand it and they aren't using it.

@connyb: Parents' concerned with what kids do online, right? I'd ask teens if they know what exactly their parents do at their dayjobs.

Teens do not tend to know exactly what their parents do, nor do they particularly care. (It's important to note that parental concern stems from a position of power, not interest in the actual activities.)

@mauraweb: when they're searching for info, how do they know what info to trust? esp. w/internet searches

Media literacy amongst teens is extremely varied, but the short answer is that most don't know what to trust. They know that they are not supposed to trust Wikipedia because it's editable (and they automatically recall Wikipedia when you ask about trustworthy information.. that's so actively hammered down their throat, it's painful). One girl told me that she trusts websites that "look" like they are reputable. When I asked her about this, she told me that she could "just tell" when something was a good source. And besides, it came from Google. Le sigh.

@AlterSeekers: According to Facebook Era, Teens see email as a "work" tool and prefer to Facebook message. Is this true among these teens?

I was surprised to find that email is deader than ever among teens. As more of their parents and teachers are getting on Facebook (or MySpace), they see little reason to email with anyone. Thus, email is increasingly needed for having an account on various sites and for getting access to or sending attachments. But even when teens do use email for "work", they do not use it for social purposes.

@mirroredpool: What borders to teens place of social networking sites and education? How would they react to using an SNS to do class work?

@annejonas: i'm curious if they want schools involved in social networks or if they like it as a social space outside the realm of formal edu.

This is messy. Many teens have ZERO interest in interacting with teachers on social network sites, but there are also quite a few who are interested in interacting with SOME teachers there. Still, this is primarily a social space and their interactions with teachers are primarily to get more general advice and help. In some ways, its biggest asset in the classroom is the way in which its not a classroom tool and not loaded this way. Given that teens don't Friend all of their classmates, there are major issues in terms of using this for groupwork because of boundary issues.

@shcdean: What future do they see for FB or Twitter.

They don't use Twitter. When asked, teens always say that they'll use their preferred social network site (or social media service) FOREVER as a sign of their passion for it now. If they expect that they'll "grow out of it", it's a sign that the service is waning among that group at this very moment. So they're not a good predictor of their own future usage.

@lazygal: Do they really care about/use school library websites? Twitter? Pageflakes? Libguides? or only if teacher insists?

Nope, they don't. All but Twitter are categorized as school tools and are only used when absolutely necessary and Google won't suffice.

@anindita: My favorite question: read anything good lately?

I asked "Recent book that you enjoyed" on my questionnaire. Half said "none" and most said books they read in school (with a *). Books that were mentioned: City of Bones, Ashes & Glass, A Year of Impossible Goodbyes, The Outsiders*, Drama High Series, Mice and Men*, Catcher in the Rye*, The Poisonwood Bible*, Twilight series (twice).

@texas_sooner: I'd be interested to know if teens denied access to SNS (by parents/choice/SES reasons etc ) feel left out/pressure to join, etc.

Parental restrictions are a huge source of frustration because of a sense of isolation. (As a result, they are typically ignored.) SES is not actually a predictor of non-use at this point except in more rural regions where Internet access is generally absent for the majority of teens. In these cases, teens don't feel left out because they aren't being socially isolated by it.

@SavvyPriya: what is one thing that teens are passionate about?

This varies across teens, but God comes up a lot. The only thing that really competes is friends. Family is also important to some teens. School and sports are also important to some teens. And then some teens have particular hobbies or activities that they love. But God and friends really dominate the passion list.

@paullowe: where do they get their news from and what kind of news do they want to get

Teens primarily get their news from word-of-mouth, not directly from any particular source. School current events and TV time are the other dominant place I hear about. Otherwise, it's generally osmosis. They walk through the living room when their parents are watching the news. Or they pass by a news article when they get online. But they are not directly and intentionally consuming much news at all.

@thornet: ask 'em how they judge whether a news outlet is credible.teens r good @ spotting fakes & phonies;wonder what their news criteria r

They don't watch a lot of news and they have no media literacy training and they're not even thinking about credibility of news.

@andrewmiller: how does having a smartphone change their interactions w/each other on SNS? more photos/videos? faster rumors? have/have-not gap?

A gap is definitely occurring. A smart phone means more more more more more - more SMS, more web consumption, more status updates, more photos, etc. Certain smart phones are desperately desired items. That said, teens are also doing quite well with the iPod Touch + wifi as an alternative. Smart phones are helping them stay more engaged and connected.

@shawncalhoun: Were teens more engaged in politics by Obamas #socialmedia storm? If so has engagmnt continued evolved in2 something new or faded?

Most teens are pretty oblivious to his social media practices. That's actually hitting the college/20-somethings more.

@alexleavitt: Ask them if they feel like they'll want to develop the social Net when they get older: eg., developers developers developers.

No. Most don't associate using social media with computer science or developing software whatsoever. And the classes on programming in their schools aren't helping.

@pbernard: do they still care about changing the ringtone on their phone, even though they make less and less calls?

Ringtones are tricky with American youth because it very much depends on who pays for the phone/ringtones. Among teens who can change their ringtones whenever they want, there's still motivation. The phone still rings (and beeps with new SMSes) and having a cool sound is desired. But of course many teens spend most of their day with their phones on buzz-only.

@harraton: Do they care about their privacy?

VERY much so. But what constitutes privacy for them is often quite different than what constitutes privacy for adults. Privacy is not dead.

@simonchambers: I'd ask how they see themselves helping to solve problems like climate change and extreme poverty...

They don't. Most teens are not that engaged with larger societal issues (except as activities to get into college). This makes sense - they are not part of public life. They have no voice. They don't hear the debates. They aren't exposed to much beyond their narrow worlds. And, for most of them, their parents aren't involved either.

@dougthomas: Teens; what are their thoughts about downloading songs? films? software? without paying for it.

They want access. Their parents won't pay for it. They don't have credit cards. They get what they are looking for by any means necessary. And those who get access to it traffic in that content among their peers who may be less technologically savvy/economically privileged.

@jamesb: how does their mobile contacts differ from social network contacts? When do they crossover?

Mobile consists of their closest friends because of the economics of the phone. Social network sites are their broader peer group. Their closest friends are a subset of their broader peer group.

@alfredtwo: Do teens view all adults in social networking the same or are parents a special case? Young relatives friend me not their parents

Depends on the teen, but many are happy to connect with adults who don't directly hold power over them or who they "trust" - aunts, older cousins, youth pastors, "cool" teachers, etc.

@mjmantey: how aware are they of general advertising/marketing ways and means?

If it has advertising, they think that it means that it'll be free for a long time. But they don't really think much about it.

@mojo_girl: how many email accounts do they have that parents don't know about- do they use same password 4 all #socialmedia ? #teens

They don't use email so it's more a matter of which ones they forgot about. They often forget their passwords so I would guess that they don't use the same password consistently. Of course, they also share certain passwords with their closest "trusted" friends so that gets messy really fast. And they change it when there's a breakup.

@matlockmatlock: OMGSEXTINGWTF?

Continuing to be present and very very messy. Sharing of naked photos seems to be more prevalent in certain teen groups than others and I'm still trying to work out what this means.

Original Post: http://www.zephoria.org/thoughts/archives/2009/05/16/answers_to_ques.html

Tags:

• danah boyd
• digital living
• online behaviour
• social media
• teens
• Twitter
• young

Mattel to Expand Online Focus in 2009 with Development of Mattel Digital Network

Thanks Businesswire: Unprecedented Demand for New Digital Play Experiences Drives Aggressive, New Initiative For World’s #1 Toy Manufacturer

2009 International CES

LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Mattel announced today at the 2009 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) Kids@Play Summit that it will be transforming the company’s online strategy from brand Web site platform to interactive programming and content provider. The aggressive initiative is called the Mattel Digital Network, a new online destination for kids and families that is being driven by the company’s experience and observations about how kids play today. The Network is a gateway to a world of open-ended online play – it will be user-focused and will become the portal to Mattel’s powerhouse brands, such as Barbie®, Hot Wheels®, Matchbox® and Radica®.

“Today’s kids don’t recognize technology, they recognize magic that engaging play experiences deliver,” said Chuck Scothon, General Manager and Senior Vice President Mattel Digital Network. “Mattel is known for providing magical play experiences through traditional toys, and now with the launch of the Mattel Digital Network, we extend our great play experiences into the digital space for kids of all ages.”

The network is being created with a simple, defining touchstone - that it will be “the place where the kid in all of us comes to play.” Even its name, the Mattel Digital Network, was thoroughly dissected. More specifically, it is truly an all-brand initiative (Mattel), ensures a continued focus specifically on the space (Digital), and requires an ongoing commitment to keeping both the content and each target audience - from kids to tweens and teens to adults and collectors – in mind when building their online experience (Network).

“To put it simply, we will be moving our users into the driver’s seat to let them decide how to interact with our brands, to consume the content they want and even to be a participant in content creation,” Scothon continued. “Through it all, we also recognize that the digital space requires us to iterate and optimize forever – we will never be done nor satisfied. So, when the Mattel Digital Network launches, we will almost immediately start changing the experience and then learn every day how to keep improving it.”

Phase one for the Mattel Digital Network will:

• Discern the age of a child and provide a different experience depending on gender, interests, and level of active participation.
• Be a kid-safe environment with content that is screened, approved and appropriate for children at each age.
• Provide tools to harness the creativity of brand fans to make it not just a place to consume content, but also to provide content.
• Deliver on being a site “for the kid in all of us” – from ensuring our channels will support the personality of each to providing a shopping solution for gift givers.

Deep History Online

An intellectual property powerhouse, Mattel has consistently ranked at the top of digital destinations for several years, behind only traditional broadcast and media players. The company’s online success has been based in an understanding that, for kids, the heart of their online experience is rooted in play, which is what Mattel delivers like no other. From better understanding kids and moms, and their desire for a strong and positive play experience, the company has built a world class online experience that provides a solid and strong foundation upon which to build. This understanding has been at the foundation of every brand website since Mattel’s earliest entry into the digital space with the launch of HotWheels.com™ in 1996, up through today’s fastest growing virtual world ever, BarbieGirls.com™, and beyond. It was also the foundation for a proprietary interactive research tool called the Mattel Playground, which has opened a daily dialogue with hundreds of real moms.

Mattel Products at CES:

Mattel is continually looking for new ways to merge traditional and online play, and is unveiling a variety of innovative products at its booth (Kids@Play Summit – Sands Expo and Convention Center #72600) including:

• Mindflex™ - Have you ever dreamed of moving an object with the power of your mind? Mindflex™, the new mental acuity game from Mattel, makes that dream a reality! A lightweight headset containing sensors for the forehead and earlobes measures your brainwave activity. When you focus your concentration, a small foam ball will rise on a gentle stream of air. Relax your thoughts and the ball will descend. By using a combination of physical and mental coordination, you must then guide the ball through a customizable obstacle course – the various obstacles can be repositioned into many different configurations. Mindflex™ combines advanced technology with the power of thought to create an interactive experience unlike any other – a game where players compete in the ultimate mental marathon!

• Barbie® Digital Nail Printer – As the first product unveiled under the Barbie® brand’s new “Beautronics” line – where beauty meets electronics – the Barbie® Digital Nail Printer connects to your computer and allows you to print custom designs directly onto your nails; it takes only a few seconds and the designs last for days! You can select from 1000s of intricate designs, and even upload your own photos to create a custom manicure perfect for any occasion. The Digital Nail Printer uses thermal inkjet technology and specially-formulated cosmetic grade ink to print directly on the nail surface in full color. A built-in color video camera lets you model nail designs before printing.

• UCreate Games - Ucreate Games puts mash-up creativity and game creation into the hands of kids. Using your computer screen and the Ucreate Games tablet, kids can build and customize unique games using hand drawn lines and a library of fun, interactive game elements, including: drawing templates, photos, sound effects, and recognizable game components. Ucreate Games uses a unique, photographic interface that automatically recognizes game activities and captures the user’s creations. This customizable gaming experience provides an endless variety of challenging game play that the user controls. Ucreate Games includes: drawing table, folding camera, USB connection, software, dry erase drawing supplies, and game template booklet.
• UCreate Music - Ucreate Music is an easy-to-use digital music making system that allows kids to become the ultimate DJ. Kids and tweens can express themselves through creating their own songs and re-mixes with a fun and innovative interface. They can record samples, mix and match loops and create their own music tracks using an assortment of rifts, instruments, runs and backbeats. Plus, kids can share their creations with friends and update and explore new content on the Ucreate Music website. For added entertainment, kids can add in their own voice and sound effects or distortions to their track.
• Xtractaurs™ - Extract, Combine and Fight Online!™ Xtractaurs™ provides kids with the tools to build the ultimate dinosaur online. The Xtractaurs™ experience begins with the Starter Kit, which comes complete with a T. rex action figure, software and Extraction Gun. Connect the Extraction Gun to your Mac or PC and then insert into the dinosaur figure to “extract DNA.” Once extracted, the DNA will unlock an action-packed online gaming experience. As boys collect new dinosaur figures, they will continue to extract dinosaur DNA, unlocking new games and special attacks. Boys can then mix and match online various dinosaur DNA traits, characteristics and fighting abilities to create the ultimate Xtractaurs™ figure. A player can boost the power of his figure in five arcade-style games, collect new DNA in dino action games, and ultimately take on the mighty Megavores™ in battle! But every Megavore™ requires new strategies. Build the wrong Xtractaurs™, and it’s back to the drawing board!

• U.B. Funkeys™ Game Factory Tool - U.B. Funkeys™ is a popular PC-based interactive game where vinyl toy collecting meets casual gaming. The U.B. Funkeys™ virtual world continues to expand as players collect figures and interact through in-game activities and challenges. The Game Factory tool enhances the user experience by allowing kids to unlock new gaming functionality within the U.B. Funkeys™ world. With each 2 Game Factory figures, kids can create their own U.B. Funkeys™ online game and post it to UBFunkeys.com where friends can play and rank their game. *Name subject to change.
• FAMPS™ (Feelings, Attitudes, Moods and Personalities) - Connecting, expressing and sharing are the basic elements of social networking and are core to the way girls stay connected! FAMPS™ takes this form of communication and brings it together with collectible figures that connect and communicate with your Mac or PC via USB and RFID. FAMPS™ figures - Feelings, Attitudes, Moods and Personalities - allow girls to reflect their various emotions through their virtual space. Each figure creates a unique emotional makeover so girls can express themselves in all kinds of fun new ways via their desktop, e-mail, widgets and IM. Girls can also create custom wallpapers, e-cards and more based on their feeling, attitude, mood or personality at that time. Additionally, girls can expand their FAMPS™ world by collecting the individual FAMPS™ characters that can be carried with them as key chains, displayed on their desks or traded with girlfriends.

About Mattel

Mattel, Inc., (NYSE: MAT)(www.mattel.com) is the worldwide leader in the design, manufacture and marketing of toys and family products. The Mattel family is comprised of such best-selling brands as Barbie®, the most popular fashion doll ever introduced, Hot Wheels®, Matchbox®, American Girl®, Radica:® and Tyco® R/C, as well as Fisher-Price® brands, including Little People®, Power Wheels® and a wide array of entertainment-inspired toy lines. Mattel is recognized as one of 2008's "100 Best Companies to Work For" by FORTUNE Magazine. With worldwide headquarters in El Segundo, Calif., Mattel employs more than 30,000 people in 43 countries and territories and sells products in more than 150 nations. Mattel's vision is to be the world's premier toy brands—today and tomorrow.

Mobile Fanta App Only Teens Can Hear

Thanks BNET for this

Ogilvy Advertising has created what sounds like an unbelievably annoying Fanta campaign for teens. It consists of a mobile app that uses high-pitched frequencies that those over 20 generally can’t hear. (Your hearing declines with age.) The sounds include wolf whistles, “pssts,” and warnings tagged to words or phrases such as “cool,” “uncool” and “let’s get out of here.”

Ogilvy’s digital strategy director Giles Rhys Jones reports that the noises were played during a presentation of the work to the Ogilvy board and, you guessed it, none of the oldies heard any of them:

Despite the prevalence of ironic t-shirts, difficult glasses and trainers hinting at at least a desire to recapture their youth, no one noticed.

The device was created by “mad inventor” Howard Stapleton, who was responsible for “teen mosquito repellant,” a device that plays classical music outdoors in order to annoy da yoof and make them shuffle along to the bus shelter instead.

Plans to go

Make plans on the go with Phonevite

Since the debut of its Express service in June, Phonevite has been gaining steam. The free service allows you to send announcements and reminders to a group of people at once from your phone or PC. All that is required is a working phone number. While group messaging isn’t a new idea, Phonevite makes it simple than anything we’ve seen—you don’t even need to register.

Considering that the young and mobile set make plans these days via text (email is so 1999), this is a great idea. Just look at the tweet-up phenomenon. Need to tell friends you snagged a reservation at Momofuku Ko? Can we come? How about remind your coworkers it is 5pm and time to leave the office? Hiring? Seriously, though, people are using it in a variety of ways. Clubs are using it to organize get-togethers and parties, while some school systems use it to notify parents when their children have ditched class, said Techcrunch.

The system actually works very much like eVite, but on mobile. Recipients of your message can RSVP yes, no or maybe by punching in 1, 2 or 3 in their phones. They can even record a response - all of which you can track on the Phonevite website. You can message 25 people for free, or up to 2000 people for $0.05 per call.

We would love to see this service team up with sites such Meetup or Going, or even become a Corporate solution.

Thanks to NGT for this post. Full article found at:
http://www.nextgreatthing.com/wordpress/2008/10/08/make-plans-on-the-go-with-phonevite/

Stunning stats about kids and mobiles (in the USA)

Cell Phones Key to Teens’ Social Lives, 47% Can Text with Eyes Closed

Nearly half (47%) of US teens say their social life would end or be worsened without their cell phone, and nearly six in 10 (57%) credit their mobile device with improving their life, according to a national survey from CTIA and Harris Interactive.

Four out of five teens (17 million) carry a wireless device (a 40% increase since 2004), finds the study titled “Teenagers: A Generation Unplugged,” which probes how the growing teen wireless segment is using wireless products and how they want to use them in the future.

Impact on Teen Life

- A majority (57%) of teens view their cell phone as the key to their social life.
- Second only to clothing, teens say, a person’s cell phone tells the most about their social status or popularity, outranking jewelry, watches and shoes.

Providing Entertainment and Security
- More than half of the respondents (52%) agree that the cell phone has become a new form of entertainment.
- One-third of teens play games on their phone.
- 80% say their cell phone provides a sense of security while on the go, confirming that the cell phone has become their mobile safety net when needing a ride (79%), getting important information (51%), or just helping out someone in trouble (35%).
- Teens carry cell phones to have access to friends, family and current events.
- Though only one in five (18%) teens care to pinpoint the location of their family and friends via their cell phone, 36% hate the idea of a cell phone feature that allows others to know their exact location.

Texting Replacing Talking

The study also confirmed that texting is replacing talking among teens. Teens admitted spending nearly an equal amount of time talking as they do texting each month. The feature is so important to them that if texting were no longer an option 47% of teens say their social life would end or be worsened - that’s especially so among females (54% vs. 40%).

Teens say texting has advantages over talking because it offers more options, including multitasking, speed, the option to avoid verbal communication, and because it is fun - in that order, according to the study.

With more than 1 billion text messages sent each day, it is no surprise that 42% of teens say they can text blindfolded, the study found.
“Teens have created a new form of communication. We call it texting, but in essence it is a reflection of how teens want to communicate to match their lifestyles. It is all about multitasking, speed, privacy and control,” said Joseph Porus, VP & chief architect, Technology Group, Harris Interactive. “Teens in this study are crying for personalization and control of exactly what a wireless device or plan can do for them.”

Devices of the Future

The survey asked teens what future changes they’d like to see in wireless services and devices and found that respondents want cell phones that break boundaries and are personalized to fit their lifestyles.

Teens remain excited and openminded about the wireless possibilities and their ideal future mobile devices would feature five applications - phone, MP3 player, GPS, laptop computer and video player, according to Harris.

Also on teens’ wish lists are phones that…
- Guarantee secured data access to the user only (80%)
- Provide accessibility to personal health records (66%)
- Present opportunities to be educated anywhere in the world (66%)
- Bring users closer to global issues impacting teens’ world (63%)
- Are shockproof and waterproof (81%)
- Have endless power (80%)
- Feature a privacy screen (58%)
- Are made of flexible material and fold into different shapes and sizes (39%)
- Have artificial intelligence - ask it questions and it gives answers (38%)

“In the future, mobility for teens means mobile banking, mobile voting, location based services, personal entertainment - the sky is the limit for how mobile our lifestyles can be,” said Steve Largent, president and CEO, CTIA - The Wireless Association. “We’ve certainly come a long way in 25 years and expect teens to be a growth driver for the industry and have a major impact on the wireless landscape for years to come.”

About the study: The study was conducted online in July 2008 among a nationally representative sample of 2,089 teenagers (age 13-19) across the US who have cell phones. More than 100 questions were asked on mobile phone usage, attitudes, behaviors, and teens’ desires and aspirations for the future of mobile communications, entertainment, and other features.

Thanks to Marketing Charts.
Original post at:
http://www.marketingcharts.com/interactive/cell-phones-key-to-teens-social-lives-47-can-text-with-eyes-closed-6126/?camp=newsletter&src=mc&type=textlink

Unilever - mobile case study

Thanks MMA for this case study:

Unilever Increases Teen Awareness with Multi-Faceted Mobile Campaign (Nokia)

Client: Unilever – Seda Shampoo, Brazil

Sector: Consumer goods, Beauty & personal care

Challenge: Raise awareness of Seda Shampoo among teens in Brazil

Solution: Mobile campaign and customized Nokia 5200 Pink handset

Results: 5% CTR, more than 360,000 visits to mobile site

The client – Unilever, Seda Shampoo

Unilever is the multi-national parent company of many of the world’s leading consumer brands in foods, beverages, cleaning agents and personal care products. Unilever employs nearly 180,000 people globally.

The challenge – Raise awareness of Seda Shampoo among teens in Brazil The Seda brand is part of the Beauty and Hygiene Division of Unilever Brazil. Seda is the leader in the Brazilian shampoo market, with 25% market share. Sold in 80 countries, it even holds the Guinness World Record for the most heads of hair washed and styled in one day. When Seda prepared to release a teen-friendly version of its shampoo, executives discovered that most teens preferred to be communicated with via their mobile handsets. Nokia and interactive agency F.biz created a mobile advertising campaign along with customized handsets for the brand.

The solution – Mobile campaign and customized Nokia 5200 Pink handset As part of the Seda Teens product launch, Nokia and F.biz developed a mobile campaign featuring banner advertising on the Nokia Media Network, and wallpaper and game downloads on a customized Nokia 5200 Pink handset. Banner ads led customers to the download page of the Seda Teens Java game and a Seda Teens branded social networking site. The site allowed users to browse beauty and health tips, horoscopes and an “Experts” area where they could submit questions.

The 5200 Pink came preloaded with Seda Teens advertisements in the opening and closing screens, four Seda Teens campaign themes and MP3s from a popular Brazilian band. The 5200 Pink was shipped with its bookmarks pointing to the Seda mobile community and a mobile game, Dancing Star, was placed as a free download.

The results – 5% CTR, more than 360,000 visits to mobile site

• 5% average click-through rate
• More than 360,000 visits to the mobile Internet site in two months, twice the number of visits to the Seda Teens website
• More than 11,000 game downloads

Paula Lopes, Marketing Manager, Unilever

“We are excited to be taking part in this new marketing initiative, allowing us to reach the consumers we want on the device they want. This campaign shows how innovative both Nokia and Unilever are when it comes to reaching consumers.”

About Nokia Interactive Advertising

Nokia Interactive Advertising provides brands with all that they need to connect with and engage the mobile consumer. It includes:

• The Nokia Media Network, which gives reach to millions of mobile consumers through advertising on more than 100 blue-chip mobile publishers, operator partners and Nokia services.
• Nokia Interactive Solutions that create end-to-end, high performance mobile campaigns for brands using banner ads, mobile Internet sites and location finders, mobile coupons, click-to-call and other advanced mobile mechanics.

To see mobile advertising in action, please visit nokia.mobi/advertising on any mobile device.

Most Popular Sites for Kids, Teens and Young Adults in UK

Thanks to neilsen online and marketing charts for this update.

Those under age 12 have an affinity for entertainment sites, whereas for those age 12-17 it’s games sites - and student and video sites for those age 18-22 - according to (pdf) a Nielsen Online study of Britons under age 23.

Under 12

- Fashion community site Stardoll has the highest percentage (32%) of children under 12 years old among 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.

“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 adapt

ed and extended their traditional offering to the web,” said Alex Burmaster, internet analyst at Nielsen Online.

12-17-Year-Olds

- Mobile phone social networking site Frengo has the highest percentage (26%) of 12-17-year-olds among 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.

“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,” Burmaster commented.

Young Adults

-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 among sites with the greatest affinity with young adults.

“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,” Burmaster said.

“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.”

E-learning at school?

E-learning is finally taking off in the U.S. Perhaps m-learning is up next, wherein mobile devices let learning continue even after the bell rings? 

Will this provide an opportunity for online advertising to wriggle its way in and reach this highly lucrative market?

Thanks to NGT and the NY Times for this great article.

At School, Technology Starts to Turn a Corner

COUNT me a technological optimist, but I have always thought that the people who advocate putting computers in classrooms as a way to transform education were well intentioned but wide of the mark. It’s not the problem, and it’s not the answer.

Yet as a new school year begins, the time may have come to reconsider how large a role technology can play in changing education. There are promising examples, both in the United States and abroad, and they share some characteristics. The ratio of computers to pupils is one to one. Technology isn’t off in a computer lab. Computing is an integral tool in all disciplines, always at the ready.

Web-based education software has matured in the last few years, so that students, teachers and families can be linked through networks. Until recently, computing in the classroom amounted to students doing Internet searches, sending e-mail and mastering word processing, presentation programs and spreadsheets. That’s useful stuff, to be sure, but not something that alters how schools work.

The new Web education networks can open the door to broader changes. Parents become more engaged because they can monitor their children’s attendance, punctuality, homework and performance, and can get tips for helping them at home. Teachers can share methods, lesson plans and online curriculum materials.

In the classroom, the emphasis can shift to project-based learning, a real break with the textbook-and-lecture model of education. In a high school class, a project might begin with a hypothetical letter from the White House that says oil prices are spiking, the economy is faltering and the president’s poll numbers are falling. The assignment would be to devise a new energy policy in two weeks. The shared Web space for the project, for example, would include the White House letter, the sources the students must consult, their work plan and timetable, assignments for each student, the assessment criteria for their grades and, eventually, the paper the team delivers. Oral presentations would be required.

The project-based approach, some educators say, encourages active learning and produces better performance in class and on standardized tests.

The educational bottom line, it seems, is that while computer technology has matured and become more affordable, the most significant development has been a deeper understanding of how to use the technology.

“Unless you change how you teach and how kids work, new technology is not really going to make a difference,” said Bob Pearlman, a former teacher who is the director of strategic planning for the New Technology Foundation, a nonprofit organization.

The foundation, based in Napa, Calif., has developed a model for project-based teaching and is at the forefront of the drive for technology-enabled reform of education. Forty-two schools in nine states are trying the foundation’s model, and their numbers are growing rapidly.

Behind the efforts, of course, are concerns that K-12 public schools are falling short in preparing students for the twin challenges of globalization and technological change. Worries about the nation’s future competitiveness led to the creation in 2002 of the Partnership for 21st Century Skills, a coalition whose members include the Department of Education and technology companies like Apple, Cisco Systems, Dell and Microsoft.

The government-industry partnership identifies a set of skills that mirror those that the New Technology Foundation model is meant to nurture. Those skills include collaboration, systems thinking, self-direction and communication, both online and in person.

State officials in Indiana took a look at the foundation’s model and offered travel grants for local teachers and administrators to visit its schools in California. Sally Nichols, an English teacher, came away impressed and signed up for the new project-based teaching program at her school, Decatur Central High School in Indianapolis.

Last year, Ms. Nichols and another teacher taught a biology and literature class for freshmen. (Cross-disciplinary courses are common in the New Technology model.) Typically, half of freshmen fail biology, but under the project-based model the failure rate was cut in half.

“There’s a lot of ownership by the kids in their work instead of teachers lecturing and being the givers of all knowledge,” Ms. Nichols explained. “The classes are just much more alive. They don’t sleep in class.”

IN Indiana, the number of schools using the foundation model will increase to six this year, and an additional dozen communities have signed up for the next year, said David Shane, a member of the state board of education. “It’s caught fire in Indiana, and we’ve got to have this kind of education to prepare our young people for the future in a global economy that is immersed in technology.”

The extra cost for schools that have adopted the New Technology model is about $1,000 per student a year, once a school is set up, says Mr. Pearlman of the foundation.

In England, where the government has promoted technology in schools for a decade, the experiment with technology-driven change in education is further along.

Five years ago, the government gave computers to students at two schools in high-crime neighborhoods in Birmingham. For the students, a Web-based portal is the virtual doorway for assignments, school social activities, online mentoring, discussion groups and e-mail. Even students who are suspended from school for a few days beg not to lose their access to the portal, says Sir Mark Grundy, 49, the executive principal of Shireland Collegiate Academy and the George Salter Collegiate Academy. Today, the schools are among the top in the nation in yearly improvements in students’ performance in reading and math tests.

Sir Mark says he is convinced that advances in computing, combined with improved understanding of how to tailor the technology to different students, can help transform education.

“This is the best Trojan horse for causing change in schools that I have ever seen,” he said.

Teens use Google Earth to host illegal pool parties

Thanks to Melissa for this post - very clever stuff

By Guy Dixon
20 June 2008 07:59AM

Tech-savvy teenagers are using Google Earth to pinpoint private swimming pools for illegal summer parties..
Once a suitable venue has been chosen, partygoers conduct the final arrangements over social networking sites such as Facebook and Bebo.

Sixteen revellers are thought to have gatecrashed two pools near Bournemouth in an overnight party earlier this week, prompting police fears of copy-cat incidents over the summer months.

According to police, pool-owning residents have returned from work to find their swimming pool full of beer cans.
Wealthy householders have also awoken to the sound of trespassing swimmers enjoying an illicit dip.
Google Earth pool party rules typically include fancy dress and a bike to ensure a quick escape if the party is disturbed.
"We are advising owners of swimming pools to be on their guard and extra vigilant," said a spokesperson for Devon and Cornwall Police.
"We would also warn prospective swimmers that using someone else's pool is trespassing and therefore illegal."

Doritos New Game

This post is thanks to Mathieson Typepad

DORITOS LAUNCHES ONLINE 'QUEST' CONTEST WITH MOUNTAIN DEW-FLAVORED TORTILLA CHIPS

On the heels of last year's X-13D name-the-flavor contest, Doritos is hoping you'll munch your way to their new online experience and down a bunch of Mountain Dew-flavored tortilla chips.

Actually, the taste is more limony- 7-UP with salt. But once you find out it's really Mountain Dew, you get it - not that you'll particularly want to. We are, after all, talking about lemon-Lime potato chips without the benefit of a caffeine kick.

But finding out that's Mountain Dew is the actual flavor takes a little work (or would of, if I didn't just tell you). The bags just say "The Quest: Guessing the flavor is just the beginning."

A URL on the package points you to Doritos' branded entertainment unit SnackStrong Productions, but really takes you to Doritos.com, which would be so much easier to enter.

And even then it would be a bad idea, because it's very hard to actually find a link to the Quest experience (it's really at doritosthequest.com, and the packaging should say that) - where you find out you can win up to $100,000 for proceeding in an online adventure where...oh it doesn't really matter. It seemed too involved.

The whole thing seems similar to the far more interesting "Indy Quest" Indiana Jones online adventure game.

Still - an interesting approach to engaging tweens and teens who make up the natural target for both Dew and Doritos (and there's 80's-style synergy here: Both Dew and Doritos are owned by Pepsi).

Kids, no doubt will dig in and see what it's all about.

That is, if they can find it.

http://mathieson.typepad.com/genwow/2008/06/doritos-launche.html

List of online communities, networks, etc for all ages

This is a great list of site that people at different life stages and ages are using online. Thanks to Web Strategy by Jeremiah for this great resource.

List of Communities, Virtual Worlds, and Social Networks for Youth, Boomers, Retired, and Beyond 

Posted: 11 Jun 2008 02:28 PM CDT

I’m doing research around how different ages using social networks, communities, and virtual worlds by age, and will compile this list as it grows. I’m looking for established community sites that are mature enough to work with brands. There is already so much coverage on mainstream social networks like Bebo, MySpace, Facebook, and LinkedIn that we forget about the other smaller niche networks.

First, understand technographics (how ages use social media) by accessing Forrester’s profile tool <http://www.forrester.com/Groundswell/profile_tool.html> , available for free. If you know the demographics for any of these, please leave a comment.

Youth
I’m primarily seeking communties that are under 18, beyond just MySpace.
Club Penguin, Disney <http://www.clubpenguin.com/>
8-12, Virtual World Stardolls <http://www.stardoll.com/en/>
Young Girls 10-17, Social Network, virtual dolls Barbie Girls <http://barbiegirls.com/homeMtl.html>
6-16, Virtual World WeeWorld <http://www.weeworld.com/>
Youth, Avatar based Social network Zookazoo <http://www.zookazoo.com/>
6-10 year olds, Virtual World Club Penguin, Disney <http://www.clubpenguin.com>>
8-12, Social network, virtual dolls Gaia <http://www.gaiaonline.com/>
Teens, Virtual World Habbo Hotel <http://www.habbo.com/>
European Youth, Virtual World Cyworld <http://www.cyworld.com>
South Korean youth, (and now global), virtual/social network Neopets <http://www.neopets.com/>
Youth, Virtual Pets Pixie Hollow, Disney <http://disney.go.com/fairies/pixiehollow/comingSoon.html>
Young Girls, Virtual Pet Teen Second Life <http://teen.secondlife.com/>
Teen, Virtual World Webkinz <http://www.webkinz.com/>
Youth, Virtual World Piczo <http://www.piczo.com/>
Teens, Social Network Shining Stars, by Russ <http://www.shiningstars.com/>
Youth, ‘name a star’
Puzzle Pirates <http://www.puzzlepirates.com/>
Youth, Gaming, Virtual World

50+
Now of course, boomers and retired are also going to be on lifestyle social networks like Facebook and LinkedIn, but I’m seeking examples that are focused in on reaching these folks.

Eons <http://www.eons.com/>
50+, Social Network BOOMj <http://www.boomj.com/>
50+, Social Network Tee Bee Dee <http://www.tbd.com/>
Boomers, Social Network There’s a larger list of Boomer sites <http://emersondirect.wordpress.com/2007/11/13/the-top-30-social-network-sites-for-baby-boomers/> , many I’ve not heard from.

Departed
Someone suggests this in the comments in Friendfeed, makes sense.
Legacy <http://www.legacy.com/NS/>
Respectance <http://respectance.com/>
Tributes.com
SweetMemoriesSite <http://www.SweetMemoriesSite.com>
ChristianMemorials <http://www.christianmemorials.com/>
PreciousMemoriesAndMore <http://www.preciousmemoriesandmore.com/> For what it’s worth, I hope this blog lives on past my time here.

Related Resources
Danah Boyd has a great PDF on Youth and Social Networks (PDF) <http://www.danah.org/papers/WhyYouthHeart.pdf>
Many reports (260) on Forrester site tagged youth <http://www.forrester.com/rb/search/results.jsp?N=0&Ntk=MainSearch&Ntx=mode+MatchAllPartial&Ntt=youth>

http://www.web-strategist.com/blog

From iPhone with Love

This technology could put a whole new spin on Emoticons - just image what you could draw and send! Thanks to Telecoms Korea and NGT for this post:

Send Mobile Messages in Your Own Handwriting

A new SMS allows users to send a handwritten message over mobile networks. KTF announced the launch of Font of Your Own service.

Unlike existing SMS giving a choice of ready-made fonts, Font of Your Own is the first service that allows users to create personalized fonts for message writing.

To use Font of Your Own service, users have to download necessary applications and set up the idle screen before opening the folder and generate the font by sending the mobile photograph of 33 handwritten letters.

Download of applications and registration of fonts is free of data use fee. Customers can create or change fonts on the PC, using a font editor program.

http://www.telecomskorea.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=5832&Itemid=2

Hands Free Gaming in Time for Christmas!

I wonder: Is there a risk that the more you play the less you are able to? (i.e. as the game feeds off your brain cells, doesn't it also kill it? - I know my mother would think so!)

Thanks to the NewYork Times for this little novelty.

Moving Mountains With the Brain, Not a Joystick
By ANNE EISENBERG
Published: June 8, 2008

STILL using a mouse, keyboard, joystick or motion sensor to control the action in a video game? It may be time to try brain power instead.

A new headset system picks up electrical activity from the brain, as well as from facial muscles and other spots, and translates it into on-screen commands. This lets players vanquish villains not with a click, but with a thought.

Put on the headset, made by Emotiv Systems in San Francisco, and when a giant boulder blocks the path in a game you are playing, you can levitate it — not by something as crude as a keystroke, but just by concentrating on raising it, said Tan Le, Emotiv’s president. The headset captures electrical signals when you concentrate; then the computer processes these signals and pairs a screen action with them, like lifting a stone or repairing a falling bridge.

The headset is the consumer cousin of brain-computer interfaces developed in research labs and used, for example, by monkeys who manipulate prosthetic arms with thoughts. The monkeys’ intentions are detected by sensors, translated into machine language and used to move the arm. In general, some interfaces use sensors implanted directly in the brain; others use electrode-studded caps.

For humans, Emotiv plans to have its noninvasive, wireless EPOC headset ($299) on sale in time for Christmas, Ms. Le said. With 16 sensors that lightly touch the head, it uses a standard technology, electroencephalography, or EEG, to pick up electrical signals from the scalp’s surface and convert them to actions that control or enhance what happens on screen.

To help players master the art of moving on-screen objects solely through concentration, the headset will come bundled with a game, set on a magical mountain, that includes practice exercises, said Geoffrey Mackellar, Emotiv’s research and development manager. “You clear the mind,” he said, and then do 30 to 40 seconds of training, by concentrating, for instance, on visualizing a block lifting from the earth. “On the first or second attempt, you can lift it at will.”

Other, harder challenges follow. In constant feedback, he said, the machine learns more about how users think just as users grow more skillful at concentrating.

Many game developers are incorporating the EPOC’s biofeedback abilities into their applications, Ms. Le said.

The system doesn’t just lift boulders. It can also detect some of a player’s facial expressions and emotional responses: smile, frown or wink, for instance, and an avatar on screen can do so, too. Grow bored during a battle, and the system can detect ennui and supply a few dragons, or change the music. The device tracks a total of about 30 responses.

A chip inside the headset collects the signals and sends them wirelessly to a receiver plugged into a U.S.B. port of the computer, where most of the processing occurs, Dr. Mackellar said.

The sleek Emotiv headset is a version of the EEG cap used for decades to record brain electrical activity, said Nathan Fox, a professor of human development at the University of Maryland.

“There can be as many as 256 electrodes at one time in a cap,” he said. ‘The placement corresponds in some rough approximation to brain areas that are underneath the scalp.”

Medical-grade EEG caps are used in research to eavesdrop on the brain as it plans motion and to translate these plans, for example, into cursor actions on a screen so paralyzed people can control a computer to write messages.

The Emotiv headset, too, taps the power of the mind, as well as using feedback from muscles, Dr. Mackellar said.

“We definitely read brain waves — no doubt about it — but we also read other things,” he said. “In classical EEG, movements of the face and muscles are regarded as noise. But we use some of it, rather than discard it.”

Anton Nijholt, a professor of computer science at the University of Twente in the Netherlands who does research on innovative interfaces for games, looks forward to the extra means of interaction that EEG headsets will provide. But he doesn’t think that all consumers will be able to use them to raise mountains.

“Not all people are able to display the mental activity necessary to move an object on a screen,” he said. “Some people may not be able to imagine movement in a way that EEG can detect.”

So far, Dr. Mackellar said, all 200 testers of the headset had indeed been able to move on-screen objects mentally.

ANOTHER headset, the Neural Impulse Actuator ($169), just released by the OCZ Technology Group in Sunnyvale, Calif., has three sensors in a headband that pick up electrical activity primarily from muscles and convert it into commands, said Michael Schuette, vice president for technology development. Players of shooting games, for instance, may use eye movement to trigger a shot, shaving milliseconds off of their response time and sparing their hands.

The exact source of the electrical activity the headset is picking up may not be important, said Dr. Jonathan Wolpaw, chief of the laboratory for nervous system disorders at the Wadsworth Center of the New York State Department of Health in Albany. He uses EEG caps as part of brain-computer interfaces for severely paralyzed people. His systems record brain activity alone, but for a consumer game device, a cap that picks up a mixture of brain and muscle activity may be acceptable.

“In a lot of these commercial uses, people don’t care if the activity is coming from the brain or forehead muscles,” he said. “It doesn’t matter to them so long as they can play the game.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/08/technology/08novel.html?_r=1&oref=slogin