/ 2 August 2006

‘You’ve got death’

A social networking website for Americans aged 50-plus went live on Monday — complete with an online obituary database that sends out alerts when someone you may know dies and that plans to set up a do-it-yourself funeral service.

The founder of internet job site Monster.com, Jeff Taylor, launched Eons.com, a similar site to the popular online teen hang-outs MySpace or Facebook for the 50-plus crowd.

Instead of career and school sections, Eons.com has interactive games to build brain strength, news on entertainment and hobbies for older people, a personalised longevity calculator and tips to live longer.

It also has a nationwide database of obituaries dating back to the 1930s to which people can add photos and comments.

”The death business is growing,” Taylor told Reuters, offering figures showing the number of deaths in the United States rose to 2,4-million in 2005 from 2,2-million in 2000, and was projected to rise to 4,1-million by 2040. – Reuters