comScore Media Metrix, a digital media measurement firm has released its analysis of the users of leading social networking sites (Facebook, MySpace, etc.), which reveals a significant age range in the users of these sites.

Those who have profiles on MySpace.com and Friendster.com are generally aged 25 and older (68 and 71 percent, respectively). Xanga.com has garnered the attention young adults, as 20 percent of its users are between 12 and 17 years of age, 20 percent being roughly twice as high as that age group's representation of internet users. Facebook.com also draws a younger audience, as it began as a college social networking site. More than one-third of visitors to Facebook.com are 18 and 24 years old, roughly three times the representation of that age group of internet users.

An analysis of MySpace.com visitors has shown that the site is now more popular among older internet users as the site experiences dramatic visitor growth. Teens aged 12 to 17, who accounted for 24.7 percent of the MySpace audience in August of last year, account for less than half of that percentage today. Conversely, internet users between the ages of 35-54 now represent a surprising 40.6 percent of the MySpace visitor base, an 8.2 percent increase just in the past year.

"While the top social networking sites are typically viewed as directly competing with one another, our analysis demonstrates that each site occupies a slightly different niche," said executive vice president of comScore Media Metrix, Jack Flanagan. "There is a misconception that social networking is the exclusive domain of teenagers, but this analysis confirms that the appeal of social networking sites is far broader."