There's so much focus on the elusive 18-34 male demographic in the video game industry that some companies may be overlooking another important segment of the population: kids. According to Kids & Digital Content, a new study from The NPD Group that examines how children interact with electronic devices and how they acquire digital content, kids are actually playing video games as early as age 2. These increasingly tech savvy children are also downloading content to cell phones, using computers and listening to portable digital music players.

NPD said it used an online survey sent to a "nationally representative" sample of mothers with children ages 2 to 14 in their households. The survey revealed that an overwhelming majority (93 percent) of kids play games on a computer, cell phone, video game console or portable or digital music player. This was way ahead of the second highest activity reported, listening to music, which garnered 52 percent.

When playing games on a video game system, kids spend an average of 44 minutes in one sitting. [Who says today's children all have ADD? - Ed.] And it's not all visual stimulation either, as the survey apparently found that kids will spend an equal amount of time in one sitting listening to music. Video games did hold kids' attention for the longest time, however, while the lowest duration was reported for cell phone activities, which the NPD said makes sense because of phones' suitability towards "snack size" entertainment.

While not directly gaming related, it is interesting to note the quick adoption rate of cell phones among today's youth. While 15 percent of 2-5 year olds were found to use cell phones, at ages 11-14 that percentage jumps up to 62. [Insert cranky, old "in my day..." editor comment here.]

From a marketing/business standpoint, it's also worth noting that the vast array of free content readily available on the Internet, digital devices and game consoles does not seem to hinder future purchases. If anything, it's been shown (at least in the gaming world) that free demos can be a great way to market your product—the whole "try before you buy" idea. NPD's survey found that 70 percent of portable digital music player users are paying for content; as are 55 percent of computer users, 67 percent of cell phone users and 87 percent of video game system users.

"Without a doubt, kids are digital content natives, seamlessly navigating between traditional and digital sources of media without missing a step," commented Anita Frazier, industry analyst, The NPD Group. "To kids, there is nothing new or novel about digital sources of entertainment. Whether it's time spent on a cell phone or personal computer, listening to a PDMP or playing video games, today's kids are more tech savvy than ever before. The real challenge for marketers is to be one step ahead of their competition, providing the content and technology kids crave."