In a new Forrester study on Gen Y consumers (must be a Forrester client to access), Analyst Charlene Li tracks the growing influence of blogs. The company's research shows that one in four Gen Yers regularly reads one. Here's blog readership by generation:

24% Gen Y (ages 18 to 26)
12% Gen X (ages 27 to 40)
7% Young Boomers (ages 41 to 50)

We've seen studies that show even higher usage; it depends on whether you count social networks such as MySpace as a "blog." The influential Pew Internet & American Life Project <www.pewtrusts.org> released a blogging report this summer. In that study fielded in January, Pew found that 39% of Internet users, or 57 million, were reading blogs and 9%, or 12 million, were writing them.

Financial institutions thinking of starting a blog might want to tune into Charlene's teleconference next week (Sept. 22, 1:00 PM Eastern; cost = $250) when she looks at the criteria companies should use when choosing a blogging platform, including a review of nine providers.

She's also summarized the vendor comparisons in a $995 report which looks at Drupal, iUpload's Customer Conversation System, Roller, Six Apart's Movable Type and TypePad, Telligent Systems' Community Server, Traction Software's TeamPage, UserLand Software's Manila, and WordPress. Her report abstract names iUpload as her favorite.