Women dominate mobile phone gaming

June As personal computer and mobile telephones have become ubiquitous, there have been few surprises in the way the cookies have crumbled, but one that seems to fly completely in the face of logic is the attraction that the female gender has for computer games. Women represent 59% of all U.S. consumers who play games on a mobile phone and these findings concur with the overall demographic makeup of Internet gamers, where women are the majority due to their penchant for online trivia and card games. Men, on the other hand, hold the majority among gamers who play intense action and role-playing games, and there is not a comparable group of male users in the mobile gaming space. A new research study entitled "Electronic Gaming in the Digital Home" concludes that women are the foundation of the gaming market, and the industry needs to cater to their preferences. John Barrett, director of research at Parks Associates believes, "Women generally spend little on gaming even though they like to play games … the industry just needs to find a game they are will to pay for."

Furthermore, women comprise 61% of all those playing mobile phone games 1-4 hours per month and 58% of all those playing for more than four hours per month.

These findings concur with the overall demographic makeup of Internet gamers, where women are the majority due to their penchant for online trivia and card games. Men, on the other hand, hold the majority among gamers who play intense action and role-playing games, and there is not a comparable group of male users in the mobile gaming space.

These results reaffirm the importance both of women in the gaming market and of the industry's efforts to promote casual games for the mobile phone, according to John Barrett, director of research at Parks Associates. "Women are the foundation of the gaming market, and as an industry, we need to cater to their preferences," he said. "This effort is key to future revenue growth because right now women generally spend little on gaming even though they like to play games and often have disposable income. The industry just needs to find a game they are will to pay for."

"Electronic Gaming in the Digital Home" touches on a broad range of topics in order to provide a comprehensive picture of the gaming market. The project includes a survey of 2,000 U.S. gamers with Internet access. For more information on "Electronic Gaming in the Digital Home," contact Parks Associates