Gameology
Games and Digital Goods
Spending Behavior Report
July 2011
Games & Digital Goods
Consumer Spending Report
July 2011
• Objectives and Methodology
• Demographics
• Executive Summary
• Games and Goods Spending
• Spending Habits
• Demographic Differences
PlaySpan Inc.. A Visa company. Proprietary and Confidential. All Rights Reserved
Objectives and Methodology
Games & Digital Goods
Consumer Spending Report
July 2011
Objectives:
• To assess interest in virtual content in 2011.
• To compare spending on virtual content year over year.
• To identify virtual content of interest and compare spending across different genres.
Methodology:
• Respondents rate the various methods they have used to pay for virtual goods.
• Respondents then indicate the frequency and types of their purchases and whether they
are through first- or third-party channels.
• Respondents indicate how they think their spending habits will change.
• Finally, respondents answer questions regarding their gaming habits.
Respondent Overview:
• 1,456 male and female gamers ages 13 to 89 (inclusive) participated in this study. All
respondents spend real-world money on virtual game content.
– VGMarket Panel: Representative General Gamer Population, n = 1,006
– PlaySpan Panel: Registered PlaySpan users, n = 450
PlaySpan Inc.. A Visa company. Proprietary and Confidential. All Rights Reserved
Games & Digital Goods
Consumer Spending Report
July 2011
Demographics
VGMarket – US General Gamer Population
•
•
•
•
What region of the United States do you live in?
1,006 total respondents between 13 and 65 (inclusive)
72% male
Average respondent age: 25.3
Average household income: $68,897
East
31%
West
31%
Midwest
21%
South
17%
Interest in Types of Activities
Education
Hang out at the mall
Read a newspaper
Read a magazine
I'm in high school
5% 6% 12%
Play sports
17%
2%
27%
Read a book
Exercise
31%
Watch television
High school Graduate
Trade School
Some college
College
Some graduate school
Go to the movies
Graduate school
Browse the Internet
Play video games
0.0
1.0
2.0
3.0
4.0
5.0
6.0
7.0
8.0
9.0
PlaySpan Inc.. A Visa company. Proprietary and Confidential. All Rights Reserved
Games & Digital Goods
Consumer Spending Report
July 2011
Executive Summary
PlaySpan Inc.. A Visa company. Proprietary and Confidential. All Rights Reserved
Executive Summary
Games & Digital Goods
Consumer Spending Report
July 2011
• More Real Currency Spent on Virtual Currency
• Virtual goods buyers spent more money on virtual
goods in MMOs than in any other genre in the last 12
months.
• In-game currency has the highest mean expenditure of
any virtual item, while subscription codes has the
highest median expenditure.
• Pre-paid cards Continuing to Grow (PlaySpan Panel):
• Game-specific pre-paid card usage for virtual goods
purchasing increased 20% over last year (9% in 2010 to
29% in 2011).
PlaySpan Inc.. A Visa company. Proprietary and Confidential. All Rights Reserved
Executive Summary
Games & Digital Goods
Consumer Spending Report
July 2011
• Offers no longer a primary means of payment
• Respondents are most receptive to purchasing virtual
goods with real-world money as a way to pay for
games.
• Merchandising Matters
• Respondents are most interested in free bonus items,
free currency, and price discounts as promotions to
purchase virtual items with real money.
PlaySpan Inc.. A Visa company. Proprietary and Confidential. All Rights Reserved
Games & Digital Goods
Consumer Spending Report
July 2011
Executive Summary
Digital Good Spend vs. Last Year (PlaySpan panel)
Median Spent on Digital Content By Content Type
Content Type
From First Party
From Third Party
July 2011
July 2010
July 2011
July 2010
In-Game Currency
$50
$31
$45
$20
Subscription Codes
$50
$20
$25
$15
Armor or Equipment*
$30
$28
$20
$20
Maps/Levels
$30
$20
$30
$11
Weapons
$25
$20
$20
$15
Virtual Gifts
$23
$30
$25
$20
Powerups
$20
$20
$20
$15
Other
$30
$20
$25
$10
PlaySpan Panels shown here.
*Armor or Equipment was previously “Wearables” in the
2010 survey.
PlaySpan Inc.. A Visa company. Proprietary and Confidential. All Rights Reserved
Games & Digital Goods
Consumer Spending Report
July 2011
Executive Summary
Digital Good Spend vs. Last Year (PlaySpan panel)
Median Spent on Digital Content By Game Type
Game Type
From First Party
From Third Party
July 2011
July 2010
July 2011
July 2010
MMOs
$70
$37
$50
$35
Free-to-Play Games
$60
$20
$50
$25
Console Games with Online Play
$60
$40
$50
$20
PC Games with Online Play
$50
$40
$48
$10
Casual Games
$25
$40
$23
$30
Social Networking Games
$20
$50
$20
$30
PlaySpan Panels shown here
PlaySpan Inc.. A Visa company. Proprietary and Confidential. All Rights Reserved
Games & Digital Goods
Consumer Spending Report
July 2011
Games and Goods Spending
PlaySpan Inc.. A Visa company. Proprietary and Confidential. All Rights Reserved
48% of General Gamer Population respondents have
purchased In-Game Currency in the last 12 months.
Games & Digital Goods
Consumer Spending Report
July 2011
In the last 12 months, which of the following types of virtual items or
content have you purchased using real-world money?
48%
In-Game Currency
47%
Maps/Levels
29%
Armor or Equipment
26%
Weapons
23%
Subscription Codes
18%
Powerups
18%
Virtual Gifts
14%
Other
None of the Above
0%
8%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
2011 General Gamer Population shown here.
PlaySpan Inc.. A Visa company. Proprietary and Confidential. All Rights Reserved
The majority of General Gamer respondents purchase
virtual goods for Console Games with Online Play.
Games & Digital Goods
Consumer Spending Report
July 2011
In the last 12 months, for which of the following types of online games
have you purchased virtual currency, items, or content using real-world
money?
51%
Console Games with Online Play
30%
Social Networking Games
28%
MMOs
PC Games with Online Play
22%
Free-to-Play Games
22%
16%
Casual Games
None of the Above
0%
9%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
2011 General Gamer Population shown here.
PlaySpan Inc.. A Visa company. Proprietary and Confidential. All Rights Reserved
Games & Digital Goods
Consumer Spending Report
July 2011
Spending Habits
PlaySpan Inc.. A Visa company. Proprietary and Confidential. All Rights Reserved
One third of the General Gamer Population
purchases virtual content.
Games & Digital Goods
Consumer Spending Report
July 2011
2011 General Gamer Population:
In an online game, have you ever used real-world money to purchase
virtual content from another player or third-party site?
31%
69%
Yes
No
PlaySpan Inc.. A Visa company. Proprietary and Confidential. All Rights Reserved
General Gamer respondents cite “playing more online
games” as the top reason for planning to spend more.
Games & Digital Goods
Consumer Spending Report
July 2011
Why do you plan to spend more on virtual goods than
last year?
I am playing more online
games than I did before
67%
I have more money to
spend now
42%
They are easier to
purchase than they were
32%
They give greater in-game
rewards than they did
30%
They are cheaper than
they were
I feel more secure
spending money online
0%
25%
16%
20%
40%
60%
PlaySpan Inc.. A Visa company. Proprietary and Confidential. All Rights Reserved
80%
Most General Gamer Population respondents purchase
virtual items on either a monthly or yearly basis.
Games & Digital Goods
Consumer Spending Report
July 2011
Approximately how often do you purchase virtual items or content with
real-world money?
Every day
45%
2%
4%
A few times a week
Once a week
7%
42%
Once a year or less
Once a month
PlaySpan Inc.. A Visa company. Proprietary and Confidential. All Rights Reserved
General Gamer respondents purchase content to use in
the game themselves and to advance further.
Games & Digital Goods
Consumer Spending Report
July 2011
What are your reasons for purchasing virtual items or content?
To use in the game myself, regardless
of whether it helps me advance or not
55%
53%
To advance further in the game
To get unique items I can only get
through purchase
To decorate my page, persona, and/or
avatar
To get items that otherwise I wouldn't
have time to earn
47%
24%
22%
19%
To give as a gift to someone else
To resell to other players
Other
None of the Above
0%
4%
5%
2%
10%
20%
30%
40%
PlaySpan Inc.. A Visa company. Proprietary and Confidential. All Rights Reserved
50%
60%
Games & Digital Goods
Consumer Spending Report
July 2011
Demographical Differences
PlaySpan Inc.. A Visa company. Proprietary and Confidential. All Rights Reserved
General Gamer female buyers dominate male buyers in
virtual goods purchases for MMOs and Casual Games.
Games & Digital Goods
Consumer Spending Report
July 2011
Average real-world money spent buying
virtual content from first-party and thirdparty in the last 12 months.
$86
$77
MMOs - 1st Party
MMOs - 3rd Party
$111
$74
Casual Games - 1st Party
$36
Casual Games - 3rd Party
$28
$0
$20
$40
Females
$51
$62
$60
Males
$80
PlaySpan Inc.. A Visa company. Proprietary and Confidential. All Rights Reserved
$100
$120
General Gamers from the Western U.S. spend more on
both Weapons and Armor compared to those in the East.
Games & Digital Goods
Consumer Spending Report
July 2011
Average real-world money spent buying
virtual content from first-party and thirdparty in the last 12 months.
Weapons - 1st Party
$36
$22
Weapons - 3rd Party
$45
$21
Armor or Equipment - 1st Party
$36
$21
Armor or Equipment - 3rd Party
$42
$18
$0
$10
$20
West
East
$30
PlaySpan Inc.. A Visa company. Proprietary and Confidential. All Rights Reserved
$40
$50
General Gamer respondents that play Sports spend
much more on MMOs than respondents that read Books
Games & Digital Goods
Consumer Spending Report
July 2011
Average real-world money spent buying
virtual content from first-party and thirdparty in the last 12 months.
$106
MMOs - 1st Party
$65
$132
MMOs - 3rd Party
$49
$0
$20
$40
$60
Sports
$80 $100
Books
PlaySpan Inc.. A Visa company. Proprietary and Confidential. All Rights Reserved
$120
$140
Games & Digital Goods
General Gamer men are much more receptive than women to email Consumer
Spending Report
communications, while women prefer promotions on Facebook to men
July 2011
What is the single best way to reach you with a promotion for virtual
content or currency?
38%
Email
49%
31%
Facebook
18%
0%
10%
20%
Females
30%
40%
50%
Males
PlaySpan Inc.. A Visa company. Proprietary and Confidential. All Rights Reserved
60%
http://www.slideshare.net/robblewis/playspan-gameology
Robb Lewis
Director of Marketing, Playspan
[email protected]
Twitter.com/robblewis