Kid Media Consumption: TV Tops, But Internet Big Draw

Live television is still tops with kids. But when it comes to activities after that, younger kids generally go to DVDs and DVRs, while older kids head to the Internet. Almost half of kids 6-11 use the Internet, versus one-fifth of those ages 2-5. Not surprisingly, the biggest time slots are weekends, after school and after dinner, according to the Nielsen Company. Kids 2-5 spend 25 hours per week watching TV and 4.5 hours a week watching DVDs or playing video games. Throw in another 90 minutes for time-shifted DVR programming. Older time-shifting technology is still a factor as well: They spend 45 minutes a week with the VCR. Overall, the 2-11 group averages 28 hours a week, 2.5 hours for DVDs, an hour for DVR, and 18 minutes for VCR usage. Nielsen found that about half the kids 2-11 use TV, while the other half uses both TV and the Internet. Nielsen says 60% of teenagers and older adults were simultaneous users of TV and the Internet. When it comes to personal electronics, homes with kids have more technology than homes without kids.