Brits will send 300 billion IMs in 2014, and it's all down to sexting
The traditional lull in news during the summer seasons means that throughout August, companies pump out swathes of research that would otherwise get ignored or drowned out. Coincidentally, Deloitte is claiming that the UK population is likely to send around 300 billion electronic instant messages this year, up from 160 billion in 2013. What's the cause of this sudden near-doubling of iMessage, WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger chat? Sexting. At least that's what Paul Lee, Deloitte's media and telecoms chief, believes, saying that teenagers sending winky emoticons and Snapchatting pictures of their genitals pets is the biggest contributor to the rise. According to the firm, the average person sends just seven texts, but nearly 50 IMs in a single day, and that if the trend continues, 2014 will be the first year that text messaging numbers fall compared to its free rivals. Just think, it'll be September soon, so we can all go back to reading about actual developments in the world of technology.
