Page 132 - AC/E Digital Culture Annual Report

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type of print and enlarging its size, modifying the screensaver and screen contrast, or incorporating TTS reading.
In addition to these functions, they enable users to access a large quantity of reading materials in very diverse formats, some of which appeal espe- cially to readers of this type, such as audiobooks, which we will discuss later on. In addition, digital reading devices are increasingly ergonomic and there are a few e-readers on the market that weigh around 150 grams.
In principle, information and communication technologies (ICTs) offer elderly people the same benefits as the rest of the population: access
to information, communication, leisure and all kinds of services. But there can be no doubt that these benefits can be maximised under certain circumstances.
It should also be realised that people who are now turning 65 have been living with new tech- nologies and the Internet for several decades and therefore the age factor is starting to be
less important when it comes to accepting and adopting technology: the digital gap is narrowing as each generation reaches old age.
In fact, according to Google’s Consumer Barom- eter,71 62% of Spaniards older than 55 browse the Internet, and 83% do so daily. The percentage of users of mobile devices for this age group stands at 91%; 67% own smartphones and 37% tablets, while 9% use e-readers. Eighty-seven percent of Spaniards aged over 55 furthermore turn to the Internet as their first option when they need some kind of information and 60% do so for entertainment.
Although, as we pointed out at the beginning of this section, reading on a screen is usually linked to the new generations, many older people use the Web as a means of obtaining information and reading. Specific experiments on working with reading show that people in these age groups are very open to new formats. An exam-
ple is the experiment conducted with readers over 55 as part of the Programa Territorio Ebook run by Fundación Germán Sánchez Ruipérez.
Ebook 55+. Readers aged over 55 and digital books
Nowadays it is common to ask questions about the new roles mediators can play in the field of reading. The contribution made by these profes- sionals to media and information literacy seems unquestionable. The overabundance of available information in all kinds of formats makes learn- ing how to locate and identify quality informa- tion and rework content a key skill for helping readers cope.
As well as learning this skill, advice on privacy issues is of paramount importance today in view of the careful monitoring of searches in cata- logues, reading times and geolocation... through platforms that distribute content, among other services.
However, mediators (librarians, teachers...)
are questioning the role they need to adopt to address the challenges posed by multimedia readers who are connected to each other thanks to ICTs and interact autonomously with both texts and authors and in many cases read more and more frequently thanks to electronic devices.72
In this connection, in 2009–11 Fundación Germán Sánchez Ruipérez started up the Programa Territorio Ebook, lecturas sin fin73 (eBook territory programme, endless reading) to analyse the impact of new forms of reading among readers. It conducted what was then pioneering research into the implications of introducing electronic reading in classrooms, libraries and universities.
Three reading spaces – three pillars for a long- haul programme – needed to be reinvented: eBooks and schools, eBooks and libraries, and eBooks and universities, in a comprehensive
READERS
Readers in the digital age