REDWOOD CITY, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--RockYou®, a leading social gaming company, has announced the results of its Social Gamer Thought Leadership study, conducted by Interpret LLC, a top entertainment and media market research firm. Key findings, now available, provide valuable insights for advertisers and marketers, game developers, and industry thought leaders looking to understand the rapidly-evolving social game space. The study explores attitudes, behaviors, motivations, psychographics, and purchase intent among the current US social gaming population. It also categorizes social gamers—based on their gaming behaviors and attitudes—into four consumer segments. The results both confirm existing assumptions and provide unexpected, surprising information about players.
“RockYou is investing in the development of the social gaming landscape and its growth as a powerful advertising medium,” Julie Shumaker, SVP and GM of Media at RockYou said. “This study enables us to better understand social gamers and their motivations and provide advertisers, agencies, and social game developers with actionable information they can leverage in a rapidly evolving social economy.”
The study surveyed a range of over 2,000 social gamers in the US aged 18 and older, 60% female and 40% male, who play at least one hour a week.
Summary of Top Takeaways
Social gamers:
- are even more socially active online than expected: they spend 13 hours per week on social networks and an average of 9.5 hours per week on social games; have 218 social connections, 16.5 real-life friends who play the same social game as them, and have made 20 new friends through social gaming
- are increasingly sophisticated gamers: 50% of the current social gamer population owns at least one console; 25% prefer games with missions or quests; 22% say the fact that their online friends can see their score drives them to play more and harder
- are highly receptive to in-game ads, especially when offered real-world rewards or virtual currency in exchange: 42% of social gamers say they would be more motivated to play a social game that offered real world rewards (eg: a coupon or gift card); 55% of players would rather earn virtual currency than purchase it with real money; 24% of players report they have clicked on an ad in a social game and made an online purchase
- are avid consumers and valuable customers in the real world, making frequent purchases in entertainment, CPG, and many other major categories
- can be categorized into four distinct segments: affluent players who spend on in-game currency to get ahead; competitive players who play to win and broadcast their achievements; newbie players who are less tech-savvy and prefer free content; and devotees who are power users but also prefer free play (further information, including detailed demographic breakdown, available on request)
"Social gamers are a population who have gone from zero to 37 million in the US in just a few short years--making them a formidable entertainment audience, yet they are not well understood. This groundbreaking research, for the first time, sheds light on who social gamers are, what motivates them as consumers, and why they are so valuable,” said Michael Dowling, CEO of Interpret, LLC. “Data from the study will be instrumental in guiding publishers, marketers, and advertisers to understand how to best reach, engage and influence a unique segment of the buying public,” Dowling noted.
Extended details, including the audience segmentation results, are available upon request. Please email socialgamerstudy@rockyou.com or call (650) 421-2037.
About RockYou
RockYou® is committed to defining the future of social gaming, creating products intended to serve players, advertisers, and developers alike. The company has dedicated itself to the development of high-quality games, including the award-nominated Gourmet Ranch™ and the celebrated Zoo World™ franchise. With advertising products that offer brands more meaningful interactions with players, RockYou creates an unmatched value-per-engagement for both brands and users. RockYou's partnerships with world-class talent are part of their steadfast commitment to working with the next generation of social game developers. Founded in 2005 and headquartered in Redwood City, California, RockYou is funded by Sequoia Capital, Partech International, Lightspeed Venture Partners, DCM and Softbank. More information at www.rockyou.com.
About Interpret
Interpret is the leading cross-media market research firm. The company applies proprietary, cutting-edge methodologies and extensive category knowledge to help clients plan, test, and measure business strategies in the fast-evolving media landscape. Interpret’s unique combination of syndicated measurement products and custom market research services provides a common language across media for the key stakeholders of the digital age. www.interpretllc.com.