8 Products the Facebook Generation will not buy

[syron]

Source: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/eight-...l-not-buy.html

Consumer tastes are changing at a greater rate than ever before. Not surprisingly, the purchasing habits of the youngest generation present the most dramatic shifts — a reflection of what they find important. 24/7 Wall St. has identified eight popular products that the “Facebook generation” is not buying.

Generation Y, generally defined as those born between 1980 and 1999, have lost interest in many of the services and products their parents found important. For example, younger Americans are less interested in cars. In 1998, 64.4% of potential drivers 19-years old and younger had drivers licenses. By 2008, that rate had dropped to 46.3%, according to the Federal Highway Administration.

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What young adults care about has shifted. A recent study by Gartner research revealed that, if forced to choose, 46% of all 18-to-24-year-old drivers in the United States would choose access to the Internet over access to a car.

However, many products that have declined in popularity among the youth are more a result of the changing tastes across all ages than a generational shift. Examples include lower sales in traditional cell phones, maps and CDs. In 2002, compact discs had a more than 95% market share of music sales. In 2010, they had less than half. Various reports suggest this decline is the result of all age groups moving away from CD sales toward digital sales.

24/7 Wall St. has identified eight of the country’s most popular products that are losing favor, either solely among young adults or at a significantly higher rate among that group. To demonstrate these products’ waning popularity, 24/7 reviewed data from a number of major research firms and government agencies. We looked at products in every major sector, including transportation, digital electronics, food, beverages and other miscellaneous consumer goods.

1. Email

In 2010, at the launch of Facebook’s then-new messaging service, Mark Zuckerberg predicted the decline of electronic mail, stating that “Email is too slow … email is too formal.” Time is proving Zuckerberg right. From December 2009 to December 2010, time spent using email by the 12- to 17-years-old age group dropped a tremendous 59%. In comparison, time spent using email by people 55 to 64-years-old has
increased 22%, and it has increased 28% among those 65 years and older.

2. Beer

Light beer has become to the current generation of youth what regular beer was just a few decades ago. In 1990, more Budweiser was sold than the top three light beers combined. Twenty years later, Budweiser has taken a backseat to Bud Light, which sold as much as the top four regular beers combined. The country has taken a major generational shift in favor of light beers, which now account for four of the five most popular beers sold domestically. As reported by St. Louis Today, Budweiser believes four out of 10 people in their mid-20s have never tried regular beer. In 1988, that rate was just 1.5 out of ten. Beer Marketer’s Insights editor Eric Shepard said when asked about young drinkers turning to light beer, “The heaviest beer drinkers are young males and that’s where the market had been going over the last decade or so.”

3. Newspapers

While readership rates for print newspapers are falling across the board, the country’s younger generation has abandoned the medium the most. As of 2010, only 7% of 18- to 24-year-olds reported having read a print newspaper the day before, according to the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press. This is the first time that figure has reached single digits. This age group also has among the highest rates of people reportedly receiving news through social networking sites or Twitter.

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4. Cars

As recently as 1998, 64.4% of potential drivers ages 19 and younger had drivers licenses, according to the Federal Highway Administration. As of 2008, that amount had dropped to 46.3%. Additionally, 46% of drivers aged 18 to 24 report that they would choose Internet access over owning a car, according to research firm Gartner. People are also waiting longer to get their licenses. According to the University of Michigan’s Transportation Research Institute, in 1983 one-third of all licensed drivers in U.S. were under 30. Today, only 22% of drivers are under 30. Companies such as General Motors (NYSE: GM) have reached out to more youth-oriented advertising companies, such as MTV Scratch, to address this widening gap in their sales.

5. Landline phones

Landline phones are losing popularity among Generation Y, who are becoming increasingly content with only having wireless phones. According to a report from the National Center for Health Statistics, 51.3% of Americans aged 25 to 29 lived in households with only wireless phones in the first six months of 2010. This is the first time the number of adults in wireless-only households has been greater than the number of adults in landline households for any age group. When looking at all ages combined, less than one-quarter of adults lived in households with only wireless phones.

6. Cigarettes

Smoking rates among young people have historically exceeded those of the general population. Now that group is dropping the habit quicker than anyone. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the share of people 18 to 24 years of age who were current cigarette smokers decreased by 17.6% from 2005 to 2010 — the largest decrease among any age group. The share among 45- to 64-year-olds dropped only 3.6%. The amount of Americans 65 and older who smoke actually increased 10.5%.

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7. Desktop computers

Millennials are the only generational group to be more likely to own a laptop computer than a desktop. According to data from Pew Research Center, 70% own a laptop, while 57% own a desktop. By contrast, 64% of those aged 57-65 own a desktop, while only 43% own a laptop. Ranjit Atwal, research director at Gartner, states in LAPTOP Magazine that those in Generation Y simply “are not buying PCs as their first, or necessarily main, device.”

8. Television

Adults aged 18 to 24 watch less traditional television than any other age group in the country, according to Nielsen’s most recent Cross Platform Report. That group, on average, watches just under 24 hours per week. The national average is approximately 32.5 hours. One of the leading reasons for this difference is Generation Y’s relationship with the Internet. According to a report published in April 2010 by electronics review/research company Retrevo, 23% of those under 25 watch “most” of their television online, compared to 8% for everyone.

[syron]

Honestly I can only see good things there, except maybe the car thing but I guess it depends on where you're living

[Skyward]

less interest for cars = more gays, that's all

yeah many things are good there.. My parents often bores me with they "at your age we had" or "at your age I was", seems they don't even noticed the evolution we had in all those domains...

[syron]

less interest for cars = more gays, that's all

I was referring to the mobility aspect

yeah many things are good there.. My parents often bores me with they "at your age we had" or "at your age I was", seems they don't even noticed the evolution we had in all those domains...

True! But that's probably the same with every generation. Maybe in a few decades we will be telling our children about the early days of facebook.. which will by then be called brainbook.. since we'll all be connected through the chips implanted in our brains D

[Skyward]

I was referring to the mobility aspect

well it depends of the country (France for the case i'm gonna explain), but to get a driver liscence, if you don't fail it (so may cost even more), you'll spend (I spend) around 1500€, and that price doesn't count the insurence, that costs me over 100€ per month (~1200€ for the first year) + the price of the car (mine costed 1000€) that makes 3700€, that's an enormous price for someone who owns around 700€ per month, fortunately I'm still living in my parents home, otherwise I could simply not get it at all.. for some people, choice is easy... and add to this, all you'll have to pay for your car, wheels, damages... and insurence's price also depends of car's horse power...

True! But that's probably the same with every generation. Maybe in a few decades we will be telling our children about the early days of facebook.. which will by then be called brainbook.. since we'll all be connected through the chips implanted in our brains D

I wouldn't trust at all in these things some people even says that they'll do it to "control us" that's also pretty hard to believe but who knows...

[syron]

well it depends of the country (France for the case i'm gonna explain), but to get a driver liscence, if you don't fail it (so may cost even more), you'll spend (I spend) around 1500€, and that price doesn't count the insurence, that costs me over 100€ per month (~1200€ for the first year) + the price of the car (mine costed 1000€) that makes 3700€, that's an enormous price for someone who owns around 700€ per month, fortunately I'm still living in my parents home, otherwise I could simply not get it at all.. for some people, choice is easy... and add to this, all you'll have to pay for your car, wheels, damages... and insurence's price also depends of car's horse power...

Ofc cars are expensive but what I meant is that someone living in a big city won't need a car as much as someone who's living in the countryside

[Skyward]

that's what I meant.. in fact in big city they'll rather take the bus or any other ecologic transport than the car.. it's well less expancive + no fuel to buy (which the price is constantly growing)

[Thunder]

I wouldn't trust at all in these things some people even says that they'll do it to "control us" that's also pretty hard to believe but who knows...

we are still controlled anyway..

chips implented i our brain? wow that scares me, hope it will never come true

im against facebook too, privacy means a lot to me

[AmcoTraD]

"facebook generation"

[Aberration]

Somehow I find this development and the technological progression in general very interesting and positive but also a bit scary. It's just not to overlook where all this will lead to and in the history many things that originally were invented to ease our lifes or for security reasons enslaved us in the end. Fb, finger prints, digital money are good examples.

[joesm1th]

i was about to comment how desktop still tops all the devices out there but then again the point of the article is about the preferences of a generation and i'm obviously damn old.

honestly though i don't see the point of lugging around a laptop to work on a project on a coffeeshop. i can only work on my stuff either at home or at the office. i think this facebook generation will learn this configuration when they get older imho. just my 2 cents!

joe

[Pheonix]

lol?

[AmcoTraD]

i was about to comment how desktop still tops all the devices out there but then again the point of the article is about the preferences of a generation and i'm obviously damn old.

honestly though i don't see the point of lugging around a laptop to work on a project on a coffeeshop. i can only work on my stuff either at home or at the office. i think this facebook generation will learn this configuration when they get older imho. just my 2 cents!

joe

people buy stuff although they dont need it, just to show off thats nothing new

be the zombie or be the controller - marketing

[Barktooth]

lol?

[FEDE]Woot?[/FEDE]

[Eupho Salvadore]

Every masculine person who dislikes cars isn't a man IMO.