Adults	Teens
A few times per day	4.9%	7.1%
About once a day	6.4%	6.8%
A few times per week	16.7%	21.9%
About once a week	8.8%	11.1%
A few times per month	19.9%	24.1%
About once a month	12.0%	8.5%
Less than once a month	29.6%	17.9%
Not sure	1.7%	2.6%

Source: NPD Group

More People Are Playing Games on the Go

Whether it's Jamdat Bowling, poker, or Tetris, more and more people are trying out the small and simple video games on cellular phones. Of those Americans who have phones capable of downloading games, a full 27% play them, up from 20% last year. According to a survey of 8,500 teens and adults, mobile gamers shell out more money for their handsets -- on average 57% more than non-gamers. They also tend to make more regular calls, using 48% more minutes than their counterparts, and their monthly wireless bills are 22% higher than the average subscriber. But not all the news is good for mobile game developers: Price is an issue. Only one-third of mobile gamers buy their games. The rest are satisfied playing free or pre-loaded games. What's more, just like with digital music, the dominant business model is single downloads, not monthly subscriptions. Another surprising trend: mobile gamers are twice as likely to be African-American, Hispanic or Asian, than Caucasian.

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The Game Room

Posted: 8/17/05