EMARKETER — Older web users are flocking to social networks, according to a May 2010 Pew Internet & American Life Project survey. Usage among internet users ages 50 and older nearly doubled during the past year, from 22% to 42%. More specifically, 47% of 50-to-64-year-old internet users and 26% of seniors ages 65 and up indicate that they now use these sites, with Facebook and LinkedIn being the main beneficiaries of the more mature traffic...

INSIDE FACEBOOK — The United States has fully bounced back from a period of slow growth in June. Following fairly strong July numbers, we’re now seeing a big gain of five million new monthly active users in August for Facebook’s home country. Seasonality can serve to explain some of what’s happening in the US -- early summer has traditionally been a slow period for social networks and other youth-dominated sites, as high school and college kids take a break from school. But there appears to be more to the story...

MEDIAPOST — Location-based services from Foursquare and Loopt to the new Shopkick app have generated lots of buzz and interest among marketers and investors. But how much spending will they lead to? According to a new report from ABI Research, location-based marketing will increase from only about $43 million this year to $1.8 billion by 1015 as part of overall mobile marketing budgets. "It's still early days and there's no single 'right' approach to location-based advertising," said Neil Strother, practice director for mobile marketing strategies at ABI. "This remains a very fragmented market that is full of experimentation"...

EMARKETER — Females are known for being communicators, and their social media usage is legendary among marketers, many of whom focus on targeting women on social sites. But men also care about staying in touch, and do so in much the same way. According to a survey conducted by Ipsos OTX for Askmen.com, Facebook was barely edged out by text messaging as the top way for men to stay in touch with their friends...

TECHCRUNCH — App store analytics provider Distimo yesterday published its latest report, once again zooming in on the pricing of mobile applications across a variety of platforms. Consistent with its previous findings, Google’s Android Market has by far the largest share of free applications available compared to other mobile app store, but the gap is also widening. In July 2010, 60% of all applications on Android Market were free of charge, representing an increase of 3% since May 2010 when it was 57%...