By : Erik Gruenwedel | Posted: 05 Jan 2010
egruenwedel@questex.com

Children overwhelmingly prefer to consume entertainment via physical format, including DVD, compared to digital, according to a new report from The NPD Group.

Port Washington, N.Y.-based NPD found that 79% of kids age 2-14 acquired some form of physical or digital content in the past year, with 31% acquiring both physical and digital content.

Video rental services and online music services were the top content-based household services or subscriptions used by kids in the past year, with 19% of kids using an in-store video rental service, 12% using an online video rental service and 14% using an online music service. Paid subscriptions to online video game rental services and paid subscriptions to online gaming Web sites ranked among the lowest.

In terms of money spent on content by kids, 85 cents of every content dollar spent went to physical items, while 15 cents went to digital.

“Forty-three percent of digital downloaders were 6 years old or younger when they acquired their first digital content,” said Anita Frazier, industry analyst with The NPD Group. “Since parents are the first touch point for children this age, it is important for companies to develop marketing strategies that reach parents as well as kids.”

 

---