Teens graduate from choosing IM buddy to creating elaborate social networking profiles.

Nielsen//NetRatings announced that over a three-year period, the top sites among teens 12-17 have shifted from those offering a selection of instant messaging buddy icons to those providing assistance with social networking profiles and page layouts. In September 2003, the No. 1 site among teens was Originalicons.com, with teens composing 77.6 percent of its unique audience. Buddy4u.com and Badass Buddy also made it into the top 10 sites among teens three years ago, with teens accounting for 73.5 and 66.6 percent of their September Web traffic, respectively. Other popular sites among teens were Blunt Truth, a forum for sharing opinions on movies and music, and Teen People, a celebrity gossip magazine.

In September of this year, sites offering tools to improve social networking profiles with song lyrics, pictures, quotes and layout designs won out with those ages 12-17. PLyrics.com ranked No. 1 among teens, who made up 68.4 percent of its unique audience. Notably, nine out of the top 10 teen sites either offered content or tools for social networking site profiles, or were social networking sites themselves.

Snapvine, which offers a voice player for social networking sites, ranked No. 2, with a 67.6 percent teen audience, followed by WhateverLife.com, with 60.6 percent.

“It is not a surprise that teens are actively engaged in social networking sites like MySpace and YouTube,” said Ken Cassar, chief analyst, Nielsen//NetRatings. “What is surprising, however, is the extent to which a wide array of supporting Web sites has developed in conjunction with these bigger, more well-known Web destinations. MySpace and YouTube have spawned a vibrant online ecosystem.”

Kids of All Ages Spend More Time Online

In September 2003, kids ages 2-11 spent average of six hours and 39 minutes online; this September, that average had increased 41 percent to nearly 9 hours and 24 minutes. Teens spend even more time online, increasing 27 percent from an average of 21 hours and 4 minutes in September 2003 to 26 hours and 48 minutes in September of this year.

Courtesy of http://www.nielsen-netratings.com