Captivating Connections.

going for the girls.

You've heard this before, but now you're hearing it again in full force...

"Videogame publishers, pushing to expand their businesses, are making games that target girls and women a new industry battleground.

This holiday season, more games than ever are being geared toward female players. Electronic Arts Inc. is releasing the latest installment of its "Littlest Pet Shop" game for young girls and introducing a series of fashion-themed games called "Charm Girls Club" for older girls later this month. Sony Corp. in August packaged a lilac version of its PlayStation Portable device with a "Hannah Montana" game, based on the popular television show about a girl and her secret pop career."

Why, you ask?

"Videogames have long been considered the domain of teenage boys and young men. Though a few publishers have developed computer games for women, the genre wasn't considered significant until the past several years. Nintendo helped fuel the change with its touch-screen DS portable device five years ago and Wii console three years ago, providing easy-to-play games that appealed to a broader audience—including women—and helped spur its sales.

Since then, publishers have made a serious effort to develop mass-market games beyond the usual shooter, racing and sports titles. According to financial firm Wedbush Morgan, female game players now account for about 40% of the overall market, compared with the IDC research firm's estimate of less than 12% in 2001. Wedbush calculates that a 5% increase in female players could translate into as much as $1 billion in new revenue every year."

wom still best way to reach gamers.

New research shows WOM is still the key tool to reach gamers...

"According to market research company The NPD Group, 41% of all gamers rely on word of mouth above all other sources of information. Although the percentage varies a bit by platform, word of mouth ranked above all other forms of marketing, followed by hands-on play at friends' or relatives' homes (31%). Magazine and online ads, incentives and coupons and social networking sites all fared poorly among gamer influence, according to NPD."

However, it's not that simple...

"'When it comes to developing successful games and targeting marketing and promotions, each gaming platform has its own unique challenges and opportunities to consider,' Anita Frazier, industry analyst with The NPD Group, said in a statement.

However, such marketing could get trickier. According to NPD's research, there is significant cross-ownership of platforms. For instance, of all the Wii owners in the United States (about 32% of all gamers), 14% also own a PlayStation 3 and 26% own an Xbox360. Among PlayStation 3 owners (about 10% of all gamers), 42% own a Wii and 34% own an Xbox360. And among Xbox360 owners (20% of all gamers) 42% own a Wii, but only 18% own a PlayStation 3."

myspace for gamers?

Can videogames help save MySpace?

"News Corp hopes to transform MySpace, which has been losing users to Facebook, into a stronger online videogaming platform as it works to reposition the six-year-old site as an entertainment destination.

News Corp digital head Jonathan Miller said on Thursday he wants to expand the videogame platform on his company's sagging social networking site, which lags Facebook in number of users.

At the Fortune Brainstorm: TECH conference in Pasadena, California, Miller said he saw opportunities to make MySpace's gaming platform better geared to videogame suppliers who then will want to launch their products on the site and employ its user data to better develop games."

casual gaming growing.

According to comScore, "casual games continue to account for a larger share of consumers' time online.

Ostensibly driven by tighter household budgets, the category attracted 87 million U.S. visitors in May 2009 -- up a healthy 22% year-over-year.

Yahoo Games ranked No. 1 in the category with 19.4 million visitors in May, representing a 6% increase over the past year, followed by the fast gaining EA Online with 18 million visitors -- up 34%.

Nickelodeon Casual Games drew 14.8 million visitors in May, while the WildTangent Network attracted some 13.8 million visitors during the month.

GSN Games Networks, meanwhile, achieved particularly strong gains in the past year, growing 563% to 6 million visitors, due primarily to the additions of entities such as WorldWinner.com and CrazyMonkeyGames.com."

can video games impact healthy eating?

That's what one new study seems to be claiming...

"Children who play an online game promoting healthy foods and beverages appear more likely to choose nutritious snacks than those who play a game promoting unhealthy products, according to a new report.

Obesity rates among U.S. children and youth have tripled during the past 40 years, according to background information in the article. 'One potential contributor to the rise in obesity is media exposure, primarily because television advertising markets high-calorie foods and beverages that have little nutritional value,' the authors write. 'We know far less about how newer media influence children's food preferences, but Internet use is a very popular activity among youth aged 8 to 18 years. Marketers have taken notice of this online revenue-generating opportunity in which exposure to products costs less than traditional television advertisements and legal restrictions and regulations are virtually non-existent.'

Advergames—online computer games developed specifically to promote a brand, often featuring logos and characters—are present on many food and beverage Web sites. Tiffany A. Pempek, Ph.D., and Sandra L. Calvert, Ph.D., of Georgetown University, Washington, D.C., conducted a study involving 30 low-income, African American children age 9 to 10 years."

So, what happened?

"The findings suggest that public concerns about online games that market unhealthy foods are justified, the authors note, but also that the technology could be used to promote nutritious foods. 'Eating patterns established during childhood affect health throughout the lifespan. Thus, it is important that we find ways to promote a healthy lifestyle for our children from an early age, particularly those who come from low-income neighborhoods where the risk of obesity is greatest,' the authors write.

Despite concerns that low-income children do not have Internet access, children in the study reported being online daily or at least several times per week. 'Overall, our results suggest that reaching low-income African American children via the Internet is feasible and that the use of advergames is a potential way to alter their eating habits in favor of more nutritious foods,' the authors conclude.

has the recession fueled gaming?

Attribute it to the increase in staycations, in-home entertaining or being stuck unemployed, but the recession is fueling gaming in an incredible way.

Note: I'm referring to engagement, not necessarily purchasing!

According to the new Nielsen study “The Value Gamer: Play and Purchase Behavior in a Recession”, "over the past several months, the number of hours that gamers claim to be playing is at an all time high, part of a rising trend in gameplay that began in 2007. Additionally, gamers have increased their purchase of used games to record-breaking totals since the Video Game Tracking survey began asking about this in 2006. The same is true for subscriptions to video game rental services by mail. Taken together, these trends point to gamers’ continued engagement with the category even as their budgets have come under pressure. Overall, the recession has not abated the trend of increasing gameplay and may have in fact accelerated it as gamers look to get more value out of the games they own."

 

video game industry down.

Looks like no industry is recession-proof:

"Consumers, daunted by the recession, hit the pause button on buying video games in May.

The game industry last month racked up $863.3 million in sales of games and consoles, the first time since August 2007 that monthly sales came in less than $1 billion, according to a report released Thursday from market research firm NPD Group Inc.

Sales of game consoles took a big hit last month, dropping 30% to $302.5 million from $433 million in May 2008. Sales of the popular Wii console, made by Nintendo Co., plunged by more than half.

'The hardware decline is the most troubling,' said Michael Pachter, an analyst at Wedbush Morgan Securities, 'because that sets us up for bad performance overall in the industry going forward.'

Nintendo sold 289,500 Wii consoles, while Microsoft Corp. sold 175,000 Xbox 360s and Sony Corp. sold 131,000 PlayStation 3 devices."

is the iphone becoming the new gamer good?

Here's an interesting question: "Will the iPhone 3G S solidify Apple as a new contender in the video-gaming industry?"

The author wonders if it's possible that the new gadget could aid in broadening the gaming industry's reach.

As she points out, "The iPhone is already gaining traction as a popular gaming platform, says Anita Frazier, a video game analyst with the research firm NPD.

'Owners of these devices said that they have been using other gaming platforms less since they’ve been gaming on their iPhones or iPod Touch,' Ms. Frazier said.

The highly anticipated upgrades to the iPhone’s mobile operating system, which will open up multiplayer gaming capabilities and in-application purchases, should help strengthen that position. In addition, Apple’s decision to drop the price of the eight-gigabyte version of the iPhone 3G to $99 is likely to encourage adoption among a wider group of consumers, she said.

But Ms. Frazier was quick to point out that mobile phones did not deliver the gaming experience that a Sony PSP handheld console or even a Nintendo Wii game machine would.

'Most cellphone gaming is done in snack-size increments,' she said. Not to mention that many of the popular games available through Apple’s App Store are of the lightweight, novelty variety, appealing to a more casual gamer, she said."

What do you think?

fashion week video game on its way.

Two unlikely worlds are coming together: Gaming & Fashion

"505 Games will co-develop a series of video games with media company IMG Sports & Entertainment based on Fashion Week, the annual events where clothing designers and labels parade malnourished models wearing the next season's collections down runways in Paris, New York, Los Angeles and Milan. The concept of the games, created by makeup artist Pat McGrath and fashion insider Noel Gordon, features top models and runways. The series will become available on consoles from Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony, as well as Apple's iPhone.

Although in the early stage of development, the games could serve up static or dynamic ads as part of the real-world experience at Fashion Week, typically sponsor-supported. Virtual goods could serve as the debut of various products. Dresses and purses might be previewed in the game before they hit Bloomingdale's racks.

505 Games plans to tap Twitter, Facebook and MySpace to create campaigns, but also work with Wal-Mart Stores, Target, Toys R Us, Best Buy and Game Stop to promote the games. The series will tie in with Fashion Week events in Milan, New York, Los Angeles and other locations that host the event worldwide."

women are gaming, but what does that really mean?

"According to Nielsen Games, gamers are looking a lot more feminine then you might expect.

True, the most-active console users fit the stereotype—male, ages 12 to 17 with annual household income of $70,000 or more. They mostly played PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

However, gaming has grown increasingly popular among older players, other demographic groups—and women.

Women ages 25 and older tended to be more faithful to their consoles than men of the same age, making building customer loyalty among console-makers a good strategy."