Comments on: 54% of U.S. kids have never read an ebook: New report

By: Suzanne

Suzanne — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 19:15:12 +0000

I’m the parent of two boys (11 and 8) and they have not read an e-book. The biggest battle today is in managing our kids’ screen time and I don’t want to add another on-screen activity to the mix.

By: Kevin Horne

Kevin Horne — Thu, 17 Jan 2013 18:37:04 +0000

THanks for the follow-up on methodology. I took a look, and also found this:

“Parents were invited to help young children read the survey but were asked to allow children to independently answer all questions. At the end of the survey, children were asked to record the degree to which a parent helped them with the survey. Consistent with prior research, an analysis comparing the responses of children with and without parental
involvement showed no significant differences.”

So little Johnny took an online survey about technology he can’t see, with *no help* wink wink from Mommy.

Sorry, but this one reeks….

By: Laura Hazard Owen

Laura Hazard Owen — Wed, 16 Jan 2013 21:34:16 +0000

Thanks guys for all the really great comments on this post.
One of the things I’m very interested in, in relation to this, is that the U.S. adult ebook market appears to be plateauing somewhat. As more and more children read ebooks over the next few years, I wonder if that is going to inspire renewed growth in the market — or whether, as to Jim’s point, the readership is somewhat limited by the amount that parents are willing to spend, or if children will follow adult-like patterns.

@Kevin Horne – you’d asked about the methodology of the survey. There’s more on that here (PDF) http://mediaroom.scholastic.com/files/kfrr2013-wappendix.pdf pp. 54-55. They note “Some survey language was modified in age-appropriate ways to ensure comprehension among children age 6–8; Children age 6–8 were not asked some survey questions due to comprehension limitations and limitations on the length
of a survey appropriate for 6–8 year-olds.” The data was also weighted to account for distribution across gender, region, HHI and race/ethnicity.

By: Kevin Horne

Kevin Horne — Wed, 16 Jan 2013 18:47:08 +0000

if it’s a statistically significant and relevant audience sample, then it would need to include 5-year-olds in Peoria where daddy doesnt already own an eToy….

By: martyn

martyn — Wed, 16 Jan 2013 18:08:04 +0000

It would be good to know how many kids preferred reading a proper book – that’s one on paper!

By: Stephen Woodfin

Stephen Woodfin — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 21:49:23 +0000

Fascinating stuff. I have read the comments and have to say that I see this trend as amazingly positive. Kids want to read, wow. And now with ereaders and smart phones they can find a ton of books, many of which are free. Their parents might consider trying to catch up with their kids.

By: Robbie

Robbie — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 17:52:38 +0000

Do you have kids Kevin? My almost 5-year-old is pretty articulate and knowledgeable and knows exactly what my Kindle is, how it differs from my iPad, how the reading experiences both differ from physical books, etc.

By: Robbie

Robbie — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 17:01:30 +0000

Absolutely agree with you Bruce. The fact that 46% of all kids have actually read an eBook is an amazing ramp rate from virtually zero 5-10 years ago. And look at those charts above, the % of the younger kids who “want to” is amazingly high. In short, eBooks will pretty much saturate/dominate the market within the next 5-10 years. Just amazing.

By: Kevin Horne

Kevin Horne — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 16:36:51 +0000

how the F do you survey a 6-year-old about technology they know nothing about?

By: Anne

Anne — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 15:43:23 +0000

I agree, Bruce. Many students don’t have easy access to Internet. (It’s probably harder now with libraries needing to cut hours.) I’m also impressed that nearly half of all kids have read an e-book.