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Report: America favors gaming consoles for media streaming
Game consoles aren't really game consoles anymore. Sure they play games, but they're also capable of plenty of non-gaming activities. In today's age, we have an abundance of apps and features installed on our consoles that make watching our favorite shows and movies easy and convenient. But of course, you already knew this. What you may not have known is that researchers at Parks Associates claim that game consoles are currently not just able to help us catch up on the latest season of <your favorite show>, but are reportedly the most popular method of doing so in the US. As reported by Home Media Magazine, Parks' data shows that roughly 46 percent of broadband-connected homes use a console to access non-gaming content via the internet, and of those homes, 28 percent use the console as their primary connected device. This high percentage of users edges out connected Blu-ray players, as well as streaming devices such as a Roku box or Apple TV. Smart TVs are reportedly the second-most popular way for people to enjoy non-gaming internet media. This may sound surprising, but really, using game consoles for non-gaming entertainment has been around for some time; after all, one of the PlayStation 2's most-touted features was its ability to play DVD movies. Remember those? Remember physical media? Good times. Gooooood times. Update: An earlier version of this story incorrectly related the statistics regarding usage of game consoles. It has been corrected. [Image: Sony/Microsoft]
Two-thirds of Americans unwilling to spend over $50 a month on mobile data, says Parks Associates
In a recent report titled Mobile Data and Applications, research outfit Parks Associates found that a large chunk of Stateside consumers aren't willing to pay more than $50 per month for a mobile data plan. What's also interesting here -- but not surprising -- is the study shows nearly 50 percent of smartphone users are completely oblivious to the amount of data they're consuming every month. Parks Associates says this highlights the "risk" networks like AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile are taking by making the transition from all-you-can-have to those tiered data plans we're so fond of. The firm's Mobile Research Director, Harry Wang, sees this as a necessity for carriers, though, expressing that "moving mobile users to usage-based plans will be difficult and painful, but changes are necessary for operators to maintain revenues." So, are you part of the two-thirds keeping bits under 50 bucks? Let your voice be heard in the comments below.
Are gaming subscriptions "going the way of the dodo?"
Duck and cover, subscription gamers, as the sky is finally falling (according to a report from Parks Associates, at any rate). The research firm has collated data that suggests one in five active U.S. gamers spends money on virtual items. What's not clear is the definition of "active," nor why the 20 percent of F2P users is highlighted while the remaining 80% is not. The report ostensibly samples "a wide swath of the online gaming market, including MMOs, console games, casual social titles, and cloud-based game offerings." It also notes a 7% decrease in online gaming subscriptions from 2008 to 2010, a period which also happens to coincide with the once-in-a-generation economic disaster that is still ongoing. Nevertheless, Parks' Pietro Macchiarella feels that the data makes it "increasingly difficult to justify subscription fees. Thanks to social games and free-to-play MMOs, both casual and hardcore players have the option of playing quality games online for free," he says. Check out the source article at Industry Gamers.
40.1 million people are playing games on iDevices, 45% fine with in-app ads
Here are two interesting stats about iOS gaming to round out your Monday. First up, a new industry survey says that 40.1 million people in the US are playing games on Apple's mobile devices -- that's over half of the 77 million strong total gaming audience. That's a huge market share, especially considering this platform has only existed for a few years. By comparison, Sony's PSP system only has an audience of around 18 million, and Nintendo's DS audience in the States sits at 41 million. We've talked about sales of all of those systems before, but the same survey says that while two-thirds of gamers will pay for games on traditional handhelds, a much smaller percentage will pay for games on the iDevices (only 45% on iPhone and iPod touch, and only 32% on iPad). Not that apps aren't bringing money in -- Parks Associates also says that the North American apps market is now worth $2 billion, and will double in value over the next few years. Even if gamers aren't willing to buy games, more and more are willing to put up with ads in both games and apps -- a recent report says 45% of adults 18-34 don't mind sitting through ads to play games and use apps for free. In short, Apple has built one heck of a market here in the last few years, and it's only going to be growing from here on out.
Analyst: Nearly half of broadband households are interested in Internet TV
We guess it just depends how you ask the question. Parks Associates new white paper From Boob Tube to YouTube: Consumers and TVs breaks down consumer interest in all the new features popping up in televisions of late, like VOD access and various widget services, finding almost 50% are interested in "premium web content" like TVs and movies delivered through a set-top box, and 33% showing interest in widgets. VP of Parks Associates Kurt Scherf sees this as just the beginning, with customers making hardware purchasing decisions and subscription choices based on the availability advanced video services. So far so good, but we guess the real test comes when these new TVs hit the shelves later this year.[Via Hometoys]
Analyst: Casual gaming to top $1 billion by 2013, social networking key
International research firm Parks Associates envisions a bright future for casual gaming. The firm predicts the "premium" casual games business will be worth a very cool $1 billion by 2013 and the key to all of it is social networking.Parks Associates president Stuart Sikes says "a persistent identity and integration with social network sites" will allow casual gaming to maintain its core audience, while expanding its reach at the same time."As companies try to capture subscriber dollars, these offerings will serve as differentiators in a very competitive market," he added. He says social networks and other game communities should been seen as marketing and distribution channels.On a side note, we'd like to report that PopCap Games plans to open its Peggle theme park in the summer of 2013. See you there!
Economy, HD adoption to blame for higher stay-at-home entertainment numbers
We've already waded through a number of research reports that found individuals more likely to stay at home and get their entertainment during rough economic times, but an insightful piece from Parks Associates takes a more deliberate approach to analyzing what's really going on. When looking at just how many people are viewing video-on-demand content now versus two years ago (it's way up, by the way), it's easy to attribute that -- along with the downturn at the box office -- to a flagging economy. However, the report also notes that HD adoption in general has boomed over the past two years, giving citizens access to more high-quality at-home entertainment than ever before. As Kurt Scherf, principal analyst at Parks, so satisfactorily put it: "As we're seeing high-definition TV penetration reach 50% of households and home theater penetration well over 20%, we're seeing consumers want to enjoy those investments as much as possible." Nice thinking outside of the box there, Kurt.[Via VideoBusiness]
Research: Subscription model unappealing to vast majority of users
A survey performed by researchers Parks Associates titled "Electronic Gaming in the Digital Home II" concluded that there is very little room for market expansion for subscription-based MMOs. On the whole, users surveyed preferred the free-to-play model. The poll data suggested that mostly only the hardcore users already playing MMOs were willing to play subscription-based games, and that only 2% of gamers not currently playing MMOs would consider a non-free-to-play game.Hardcore MMORPG players tend to frown on or look down on microtransaction-based games, but aside from World of Warcraft, most of the industry's growth has occurred via free-to-play. In fact, the director behind the research project (named Yuanzhe Cai) was quoted saying: "World of Warcraft, with over 10 million players, exceeded expectations for subscription-based MMORPGs, but it's unlikely any other publishers will achieve the same in the near term using a subscription model."Perhaps we'd better get used to microtransactions, eh?
Analysts forecast 10-percent growth in universal remote market
Research firm Parks Associates is calling for double digit (just) compound annual growth rate (CAGR) in the universal remote category between now and 2013. Knowing how the average consumer is more willing to live with a basket of remotes than plunking down money on a universal model, the 10-percent CAGR is nothing to sneeze at. We're a little troubled by the trend of increasing system complexity called out in the report, however. While we're resigned to ever-increasing complexity in AV systems, average consumers would really like to see things head in the other direction. Hiding the complexity in the remote also tends to make remote set-up complex, which will definitely threaten that growth rate. Also, the report doesn't cal out technologies like HDMI-CEC, which we'd really like to see take off. These gripes aside, though, we're hoping that remote makers take the findings as an incentive to innovate.
"Custom" installs becoming less so
According to research firm Parks Associates, revenues from home theater and distributed audio systems will almost double over the next five years and reach $11-billion. If the current housing slump has you thinking that you'll be in your current abode forever and miss out on your share of that whole-home pie, take heart -- the firm expects to see growth in the retrofit market as well. As wireless networking equipment makes it cheaper and easier to saturate your home with entertainment bits, getting a whole-home system won't require new construction or major renovation. Receivers with multiple zone support are common these days, but EHD readers know that all the necessary pieces for whole-home entertainment (audio and video, please) are showing up in the market; what's really needed is some integration and streamlining. So bring it on, manufacturers; pulling cables through walls is no fun![Image courtesy CEPro]
Women do the lion's share of mobile gaming, sez study
Cellphones seem to have a way of busting gender stereotypes. First we hear that men are more likely than women to buy a phone as a fashion accessory (Nokia probably wishes they'd caught wind of that before showing the decidedly feminine L'Amour Collection), and now we're being told that some 59% of all mobile gamers represent the fairer sex -- at least that's what research firm Parks Associates has concluded in surveying some 2,000 Internet-connected gamers. "Women are the foundation of the gaming market, and as an industry, we need to cater to their preferences," says Parks Associates' director of research John Barrett. Of course, if this means more games like Spore dropping on our phones, us boys say, "bring it on."
