Boomers aren't as captivated by social networking sites as younger people, but they're warming up to them in much the same way they've embraced online activities like e-mail and shopping.

About 61 percent of online boomers had visited sites like YouTube that offer streaming or downloadable video, while 41 percent had checked out social networks such as Linked-In, Facebook, and MySpace, according to The NPD Group, a market research firm.

"I think we have a slow movement [by boomers] towards some social media tools," said Suzanna B. Stinnett, an author who muses about the online behavior of boomers at GreatAdaptations.org.

"However, it is miniscule compared to adoption by younger people."

"Social media, like all tech tools, must answer to its users," she said. "Boomers would use any tech tool for ease of community building, to better organize busy lives, and perhaps for newly conceived benefits such as fundraising and innovation. Tech developers will respond with applications as boomers begin to feed back to them."

NPD said the data should serve as a wake-up call for companies that want to sell merchandise to boomers, who spend about $2 trillion annually on everything from baby food to long-term care insurance.

"There's an ongoing misperception that certain Web activities are the exclusive domain of young people," said Russ Crupnick, entertainment industry analyst for The NPD Group. "That misperception could cost the entertainment industry, in terms of lost opportunities to target valuable consumers."

Taking note of the aging demographic is important. For example, boomers who engage in social networking or video streaming, are more about 15 percent more likely than non-streaming boomers to buy DVDs, CDs and go out to the movies, NPD found.

To be sure, boomers visited these social hot spots an average of just eight times in the past three months - not much compared to the daily visits by many teens. And "visiting" a site doesn't  mean a boomer is "using" its features. Many parents peruse MySpace to make sure it's safe for their kid, but they aren't necessarily logging in to their own account.

Paying Attention
Even so, adults over 50 are part of the fastest-growing group of online users, according to the Center for the Digital Future at the University of Southern California.

What's important for boomers is that certain Web sites offer them access to important information on topics such as healthcare, as well as a forum for establishing social connections with other adults their age. Outside of the Web, other activities such as video gaming - which lured younger boomers in during the 80s - is continues to be hip with the over-40 crowd.

Teens and young adults shop online less than older consumers, perhaps owing to the fact that many teens do not have access to credit cards. However, the use of email and Web surfing and online shopping was pretty consistent among Web users of all ages.