PORT WASHINGTON, NEW YORK, January 15, 2008 – On average, kids between the ages of 2 and 14 are consuming various types of digital content between three and seven times a month (on a single device), according to The NPD Group’s recently released report, Kids and Digital Content. The report provides an understanding of kids’ use of entertainment content on consumer electronic devices among kids age 2 to 14, as it relates to physical and digital content.
According to the study, kids are downloading online video clips onto a device the most frequently each month (7.1 times per month), followed by music videos (5.7 times per month), music (4.2 times per month), games (3.1 times per month), and ring tones/ring tunes (2.8 times per month).
Playing games is the most prevalent activity on the four key devices – 84 percent are gaming on a computer, video game system, portable digital music player (PDMP) or cell phone – while more than half are listening to music and one-third are communicating with images or interacting with various video formats.
The way kids consume their digital content varies. Games and movies are primarily driven by their physical offerings, while ring tones/ring tunes are often consumed digitally, though half report consuming them in the physical format. Almost all kids who use movie content get it in the physical format, with one-quarter also getting movies in digital format.
What are kids doing on these devices? For both video games systems and computers, playing games is the number one activity measured. Watching movies comes in second on video games systems, while listening to music is the second most popular activity on computers. Downloading ring tones/ring tunes and sharing pictures/images account for 46 percent and 43 percent, respectively, on cell phones. Eighty-six percent of kids who use a PDMP listen to music on it, where watching movies comes in a distant second with 17 percent.
On average, kids spend between $6 and $12 on some type of digital content each month and between $13 and $18 on physical content. Among kids who pay for physical games and also kids who pay for physical music, those who are more experienced (e.g., have been using a device for this purpose for more than one year) have a higher average monthly expenditure than new users.
“NPD has been researching the digital kid for several years, and it is evident now more than ever before just how involved they are with consumer electronics and digital content,” said Anita Frazier, industry analyst, The NPD Group. “The ramifications on any industry that serves this market is enormous, and knowing what kids are doing and how they're doing it is critical to entities looking to deliver the products and services that this market demands.”
Methodology
Data was collected via an online survey to a nationally representative sample of moms with kids ages 2 to 14 living in the household. In order to qualify, respondents were required to be the parent/guardian of at least one kid ages 2 to 14. The report is based on 3,376 completed surveys from these respondents. Fieldwork was conducted from October 15 to October 29, 2007.
About The NPD Group, Inc.
The NPD Group is the leading provider of reliable and comprehensive consumer and retail information for a wide range of industries. Today, more than 1,600 manufacturers, retailers, and service companies rely on NPD to help them drive critical business decisions at the global, national, and local market levels. NPD helps our clients to identify new business opportunities and guide product development, marketing, sales, merchandising, and other functions. Information is available for the following industry sectors: automotive, beauty, commercial technology, consumer technology, entertainment, fashion, food and beverage, foodservice, home, office supplies, software, sports, toys, and wireless.For more information, contact us or visit http://www.npd.com.