It’s no surprise iTunes is definitely a top option for the teenagers not lacking the financial support. Trusted with their parents' credit cards and an iTunes account, preteens are launching into the world of iTunes which offers as many possibilities for purchasing digital music as daddy’s credit card can endure. Due to the iPod being practically synonymous with iTunes, it’s common sense that Apple’s iTunes has done a great job winning over the younger generation.
As Slyck News informs us, the results of the NPD Group’s most recent study only partially confirm this belief. According to this study, the fact is that with the 9-14 age group, iTunes remains only a tough competitor not an overwhelming one. As revealed by the study, 49 per cent of preteens used iTunes, 26 per cent preferred LimeWire, whereas 16 per cent used MySpace to trade music. The other 7 per cent were left out without any claim.
What the NPD Group wanted to outline once more was the fact that P2P file-sharing networks are still, undeniably, a popular way to download for kids belonging to this segment of age.
Although Russ Crupnick, vice president and entertainment industry analyst for The NPD Group welcomed the willingness of so many youngsters to legally acquire digital music (by actually buying it) he signaled the ignorance of many parents towards their children’s online activities, the lack of supervising which results in the still undisputed popularity of P2P.
Despite the simplicity of iTunes and iPod and probably the access to their parents' credit cards and money, preteens are not exclusively direct their attention to Apple’s music store. With kids we can almost speak of a downloading routine. However, we should not let ourselves forget that age is a very important issue here. The exact parents in question who are being finger pointed are relatively just as bewildered by this file-sharing phenomenon as their kids. Many of them reached maturity just as the digital revolution was embryonic. And let’s face it, how many of the parents do not actually share the excitement and the ease of P2P file-sharing together with their kids?
