Downloading digital entertainment content has never been so popular among kids ages two to 14, according to an August 2011 report from market research company The NPD Group.

The study, Kids and Entertainment Content, 2011 Edition, finds that for every dollar kids spend on entertainment content, $0.79 goes to physical format content and $0.21 goes towards digital format content. This marks a noticeable shift towards digital acquisition when compared to 2009, at which point $0.85 went to physical content and $0.15 went to digital content.

Music is king among kids’ content collections, including both physical and digital formats, with a 72% share. Movie content comprises the second highest share, followed by video games, television shows and books and apps.  While the majority of kids’ entertainment content is still being accessed physically, it’s clear that digital content has grown substantially over the last two years at 17% growth for games, 14% for music and 13% for movies.

Of course, enabling these growth rates is the convenience afforded by downloading content. And the simplicity of downloading makes it accessible for young kids – roughly half of kids have paid for their first form of digital content by the age of seven. Music is most often the gateway download, followed by computer games and mobile games.

Among kids, most digital entertainment content is purchased with the pay-per download method, with the exception of TV shows and movies with just over half using a subscription service.