Gamers and Brands Increasingly Using Social Gaming Instead of Consoles
A study by the Total Consumer Spend 2010 and published by games industry market research specialist Newzoo has reported a 66% increase in games played on social networks and a 27% global rise in massively multiplayer online (MMO) games.
In contrast, the sale figures for games consoles have fallen significantly in 2010 - UK consumers spent 25% less on console games than last year. Other key European markets showed an even bigger growth in online gaming, with total online spend for this model up 13% in France and 33% in Germany.
Peter Warman, Managing Director of Newzoo BV, commented, "Mobile and social gaming as well as massively multiplayer online games are enjoying mass-appeal and taking major chunks out of 'total gamers' wallet'." He added that gamers these days are "spreading their budget across more platforms".
The report suggests that instead of spending on consoles, gamers are becoming increasingly more social and these days prefer to use free-to-play games more readily available on social networks such as Facebook and Bebo, even though this often entails pay-to-play agreements.
Also signalling a progressive move away from the traditional console games market, brands are increasingly using social gaming to advertise their products and services.