Today, the researchers at Frank N. Magid Associates, in partnership with PlaySpan, announced the results for their second annual survey on the virtual goods purchasing habits of North American consumers. According to the study, 13% of those surveyed reported that they had purchased virtual goods in the last 12 months. The mean of digital goods purchases was up to $99 in 2010, versus $87 in the same period last year. The median rose 67% percent this year, up to $50 in 2010 versus last year's $30.
The heaviest concentration of digital good purchasers came from owners of the iPhone, with 43% of iPhone owners having purchased a virtual good. Virtual worlds ran a close second with 41% of players saying they had bought a digital item. 33% of handheld gamers and 32% of mobile gamers bought a digital good in the last 12 months.
Of the overall respondents, 21% of those who bought a virtual good said they planned to spend more in the next 12 months. 16% of buyers says they used Facebook's recently-implemented Credits system to buy items.
“There’s been a substantial increase in the number of consumers buying digital goods and an upward trend of players spending more on average than in the previous year,” said Magid President Mike Vorhaus. “With the proliferation of smartphone users, and players becoming more comfortable paying for items within virtual worlds and social networks, Magid believes there is a huge opportunity for developers and publishers to capitalize on this growing multi-billion dollar industry, especially as virtual credits and pre-paid payment options become more widely accepted.”
The detailed breakdown of results is as follows:
Largest demographic of consumers who have reported buying virtual goods:
1. Males ages 18 to 24 (31%)
2. Males ages 8 to 11 and 12 to 17 (both at 23%)
3. Males 25 to 34 (21%)
4. Females ages 8 to 11 (16%)
5. Females ages 12 to 17 (15%)
6. Females ages 18 to 24 (14%)
Where consumers are buying from:
1. In a game (57%)
2. The official Web site outside the virtual world or game (38%)
3. E-commerce site such as PlaySpan (16%)
4. Another player (8%)
5. Other (8%)
6. Not sure (8%)
Type of game or environment where consumers have bought from:
1. A free, web-based game (37%)
2. A social network site, other than a game (31%)
3. A free multiplayer computer game (29%)
4. A game on a social network site (29%)
5. A connected console marketplace (21%)
6. A paid, subscription based multiplayer game (18%)
7. An online virtual world (11%)
8. Other (6%)
Concentration of virtual goods purchasers within ethnic groups:
1. Asian American (26%)
2. Latinos (20%)
3. African American or Black (15%)
4. Caucasians (11%)
5. All others (12%)
PlaySpan noted that the younger demographics seemed more willing to purchase digital goods. “We’re on the upward curve of a huge growth industry with younger players leading the charge,” said PlaySpan CMO Eric Hartness. “In addition to growth in online games and virtual worlds, the data shows, and our internal metrics corroborate, tremendous virtual goods purchasing behavior in social network games.”
Some firms believe global virtual goods revenue will pass $10 billion in 2010. ThinkEquity, LLC have said that the virtual good industry sits at $1.6 billion in North America, and expects that number to pass $3.6 billion within three years.
