According to a recent report released by leading market research firm, The NPD Group, 2009 could very well mark the beginning of a new trend in boys’ and girls’ usage of consumer electronics. Scoring particularly high in trends were both mobile phones and laptop computers. Quite interestingly, according to the report, females are now more apt to use these specific devices, while at the same time, kids of all ages and genders are trending towards ‘talking’ via sms and photo sharing.
Surveying 3,212 adults aged 23 or older, with children aged 4-14 in the household, the survey goes on to find that televisions and computers retain their top two spots year over year, but that both HD televisions and laptop computers, as opposed to SD TV’s and desktops, have seen a strong surge as of late. While the study admits that this is mainly an offshoot of the parents’ own upgrades, the increased level of kids ownership of laptops seems to suggest that parents are purchasing these devices specifically for their 4-14 year old.
On average, households with this demographic contain 11 consumer electronics devices, a trend not showing any signs of slowing, with 33 percent of parents reporting that they plan on purchasing at least one consumer electronics device for their child in the coming year. Younger kids can expect electronic learning toys, while the older demographic should land new mobile phone or digital camera gear.
Since launching the kids’ usage of consumer electronics report over 5 years ago, NPD says devices such as personal digital music players, laptops, digital cameras, and mobile phones in particular have seen explosive growth, and that the entire landscape of consumer electronic consumption has shifted dramatically. For example, 37 percent of kids now use a personal digital music player, as opposed to only 6 percent in 2005.
Speaking of 37 percent, the NPD survey also reports that 37 percent of kids that use a portable gaming device own their own, and 30 percent of kids that use a personal digital music player own it. And while these numbers in their own right are impressive, taking a look at the bigger ticket item, one in four 4-14 year olds own their own console video game system.
“The activity which drives two of the three most-used consumer electronics devices, computers and video game console systems, is gaming. Playing games is an activity that kids enjoy across most of these devices,” said Anita Frazier, industry analyst, The NPD Group, “so it’s likely one of the activities driving personal ownership among kids.”
What the survey did not drill down into, and I’ll take the leap out to that branch, is how many of these personal digital music devices also function as a mobile gaming device? Yes, I’m specifically talking to the iPhone right now. Don’t forget, we’re now t-minus 2 days and counting until Apple’s iPhone OS 3.0 launches, with a full inclusion of microtransactions.
Illustrating my point, Frazier goes on to state, “CE devices are great, but content is the key driver that will help continue the growth of the kids CE market, particularly digital content, which goes hand-in-hand with portable devices.”
So there we have it, a possible revolution in the making. As I alluded to earlier this year, my prediction is that Apple with the iPhone is going to do for gaming microtransactions what they did for mp3’s and the music industry. Provide a safe, secure, and trusted platform that lowers fears, misconceptions, and outright bias.
Remember, swelling tides raise all ships.
