Language Services for Older Adults in China: Evidence from Administrative Enterprise Registration Data and Policy...

Population aging and digital-by-default public service delivery make communication access a policy determinant of equitable aging. In China, dialect diversity, sensory decline, and low digital literacy can prevent older adults from understanding information and navigating health and social services. Yet the provider ecosystem that could deliver language support and age-friendly communication technologies remains poorly measured. This study maps the supply-side dynamics of China's Language Services for Older Adults (LSOA) industry - enterprises offering language-based interventions and communication-access technologies addressing older adults' cognitive, sensory, and social-communication needs. Using nationwide administrative enterprise registration records (1990-2023) from the National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System, 429,017 LSOA-relevant enterprises were identified through a reproducible keyword pipeline and expert-validated classification. The sector shows a four-phase trajectory, with rapid expansion in the 2010s and a post-2020 shift toward consolidation. In 2023 the market was estimated at RMB 163.5 billion and was dominated by small providers, with marked regional disparities and weaker coverage in central and western regions. Policy responses should prioritize enforceable service and accessibility standards, competency-based workforce training, and targeted fiscal and procurement instruments to scale inclusive technologies and reduce later-life linguistic digital inequities.