大象传媒

It wouldn't be Tickbox on behalf of uSwitch would it?

Tickbox's site comes up if you google for that quote, and a google for "Tickbox uSwitch" brings up a number of results...

I suspect that it's also in the best interest of the media as well though. If 大象传媒 Technology posted an outlandish article on their website, it would probably generate some traffic, get emailed about a bit, raise the profile of the site, and - in the case of the international version - generate some ad revenue.

After all, being the most objective and fair journalist in the world gives you nothing if your site has no foot-fall. Based on this, it's all the more admirable that you've ignored it.

I'm in a 'grumpy hit and run' comment mood today so, without having read more than the first few sentences of the post, here goes:

I doubt Granny is playing WoW, maybe causal games like I don't know what. Does online gambling count? Old people like that sort of thing...

Well that's 5min of my life I'll never get back.

Then again I'd only be reading more depressing news about the credit crunch so I suppose I should say thank you for the distraction.

And how many pensioners are having internet sex? That would make a good headline...

Anyone else reading this might be informed about the interesting 'scams' pulled by the PR brigade to get the 'churnalists' to give them free advertising copy by the excellent book 'Flat Earth News' by Nick Davies..

another pointless survey that serves no purpose at all, surveys are only correct when all parties of a specific demographic are surveyed, which would mean they would have to survey the whole nation

So granny isn't playing WoW. All surveys involve some sort of number 'fudging' so this is no surprise really.

As for commenter five, I don't want to know that granny is getting 'down and dirty' online. But on a similar point, I've just set my grandmother up with Sky TV and the only channels she can find (an her attempts to find 大象传媒 1) are the Adult channels on the EPG.

Every now and then I get a phone call taking if I'd go and sort out her television - by returning the volume to a reasonable level (she knows where the volume up key is, hasn't found the volume down key yet) and switching the TV back to the good ole 大象传媒. (I'm now using the (grand)parental controls to disable the Adult shows.)

I think serious work needs to be done to help the older generation master technology. I think they are getting a raw deal right now, with handed down ancient computers. Lets get them new computers, loaded up with WoW and a nice fast internet connection. And even a social network aimed at their demographic - help with the loneliness often associated with those liking alone. :-)

I agree that surveys are at best unrepesentative and at worst deliberately misleading but what I really came away with after reading this post was the ongoing issue of pigeonholing people according to the types of games they play.

Videogames specifically are still viewed as frivolous and a bit "sad" by a great many people. In some instances by the same people who would happily sit down and play poker all night. Is there really any difference between Gran playing online bingo and Grandson questing on WOW? Sure, the experiences are very different but they're both playing games, interacting with others and using technology. Why should one experience be considered a more "valid" type of game than another?

To pick up on rosscbrown's comment, there is work is being done on how older users access digital services (I'm involved in one myself) but it's expensive, time consuming and not very fashionable therefore underfunded. A bit daft really when for all intents and purposes it's about investing in our own futures.

I would point out that at the UNISON Retired Members Conference last month a motion was passed regarding the calculation of a Pensioners Price Index for linking retail prices to the Old Age Pension. The original motion asked for the removal of some items from the government's Price Index on the basis that they were not relevant to pensioners' shopping. An amendment to include video games in the pensioners' shopping was passed unanimously on the basis that many pensioners enjoy playing these games. I understand the point you are making but how many pensioners have you surveyed?

Although highlighting the over-hyping of this story is important, it is also important to remember that online casual games are still games. There is nothing wrong with playing online sudoko or bingo, and the same skills are required to both play and make new games of this type as are needed for more complex casual games. If only one stopped looking at computer games only in the context of AAA products, one would find that computer games are in fact highly popular for all walks of life, ages and genders. This is something to be celebrated, not dismissed due to the lack of AAA stardom!

It makes you wonder if the current online gamers (me included) will still continue to play into our old age. A lot of time will pass and technology will change, I just hope we can keep up and avoid the need for children/grandchildren to help us.

@12, I think we will continue to play the games we play now long into old-age but I'm not too sure if we'll adapt to playing the games of the next generation(s).

rory.....

i know my granny is not a gamer...

In my World of Warcraft guild, one of our members is both a grandmother and a pensioner, so it does happen. However, I'd imagine the numbers of pensioners on WoW would be quite few.

Sony released a teaser trailer for the Playstation 9 which I think it said should be out in 2025 or sometime near that.

It contained synthetic chemicals that were giving out by the game in question which we humans would inhale, thus giving an illusion that you the player was really "inside" the game. Kind o9f like virtual reality but without the image making it look unrealistic.

Now, on point, if this is the case then yes in 2025 I can very well believe that granny's will be playing video games... but as for now?

Not a chance!

I agree with the survey actually. None of my female friends who are in their 20s stay at home on a Saturday night playing online bingo. Whereas my 62 year old grandma found this website with a long list of free bingo bonuses (some website called latestbingobonus i think). I had to sit with her for an entire evening and helped her to sign up to all those sites one by one. She spent the next 3 weeks playing bingo with free money. That was great fun for her and she even made some friends in the chat rooms, without ever spending a penny. She's even into bingo lingo now, sends me messages like WTG and BRB, oh dear...

Wow! I read so much PR puff masquerading as news on the 大象传媒 site every day ("A new survey revealed...") that it's great to see some of it finally being called out.

There's still an interesting story here though, regardless of the puff.

My Gran, who 2 years ago couldn't even tell you what a laptop is is now forever playing of all things. Taking off my "Gosh but I'm patronising to my Gran" hat for a second, I think it's a great development. So many social outlets for older people are getting closed down by the score it seems (post offices, pubs, corner shops). This kind of outlet is, in the main, good clean fun and even a way to meet people - as previous commenters have observed.

I think bingo is the worst game a granny could play, old people get very little money a month, and when they need to spend it on a game like bingo just to interact is crazy!

There are plenty of other games like wii that let people interact with each other, without the need of money..(Not including the console that is)!

While I can agree there has certainly been an increase in elderly people enjoying games (I work with dependent individuals)... I don't think you can REALLY call bingo a game though, can you? It's more of an "online experience" than a game. Much like people who used to head to bingo halls such as before the turn of the century - they don't go for the game, they go for the social aspect.

At the end of the day you don't really play bingo as such, all you do is click a button to buy your cards and sit back. Most people get enjoyment from bingo because of the community aspects, not because they enjoy the "game".

In my eyes an online bingo player shouldn't be defined as an online gamer.

I have to disagree with Pete Willis' comments about bingo not being a game, it's very much a game. Kids play it in school to learn foreign words and things like that. There's definitely an element of playing, be it as simple as rolling a dice. Ok, so it's not complex like something such a WOW or even Sudoku, but there is definitely a fun game aspect in there. Having worked in myself, I know there's certainly an element of the social aspect, but not all players got to bingo to be social.

There were plenty there on their own who were there not for the social experience, but just to get out of the house and stop them going insane! It's a big worry the way UK bingo is suffering more and more cut backs and closures, then lots more of these old people will take to the game online and never get out of the house. I wonder how many of the total of these elderly people are using online gaming of all varieties as an escape from leaving the confines of their own home.