By Nick Heath, 10 April 2008 15:24
NEWS
Mobile phones are designed by men for men, with women and children not getting a look in, according to analyst Gartner.
Men only make up 32 per cent of the world's population - but most mobiles are targeted at males aged 20 to 64 it says.
Read all about ITÂ…
Check out the Editor's Blog for the silicon.com chief's take on the hot tech issues of the moment.
Gartner is urging phone manufacturers to change their products to make them more appealing to women and children, who will be an increasingly important market for mobiles in future.
Monica Basso, research VP at Gartner, said in a statement: "Mobile products will have to address gender diversity and demographics, evolving and differentiating into a range of consumer products. This trend, together with the consumerisation of IT and progressive evolution of the worker population towards younger individuals and women will force user organisations to rethink their working structures, environments and processes."
Gartner are predicting a shift in the workplace make-up, with more people working later in life in developed countries and a wider mix of gender and ethnicity among staff worldwide.
Comments
There are 2 comments. Join the discussion
1. John H Woods
In my experience, mobiles _are_ targetted at women. Pink Pebl? Razr? LG Chocolate? Prada? Nokia Lipstick?
What about the the gadget-factor? They should hear my stepdaughter (LG Viewty) and her mates --- bluetoothing video, making slideshows, and bragging about megapixels and gigabytes, and subverting the mosquito 'technology' to make ringtones adults can't hear.
The other day at a party a semi-retired woman was proudly showing me her blackberry --- and she knew her way round it, make no mistake --- telling me how she could run her whole on-line business from the beach.
Maybe females aren't that different, after all?
2. David L
Hang on, we've already got the Pink BlackBerry. What more could a woman want?