New Study Reveals the Social Graces of Social Gaming for Women

CHICAGO and NEW YORK, Feb. 16 /PRNewswire/ -- A new study from Q Interactive and Engage! Expo (host of the Virtual Goods Conference) reveals insight into the psychology of social media gaming women, the largest demographic of social media users. The study of over 700 women, about 54 percent of which play daily and 30 percent weekly, investigates a range of viewpoints around salient social media gaming topics.

(LOGO: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20060103/CGTU009LOGO)

"We had a frank conversation with women to better understand not only how, when and what they play, but how they approach gaming at work, their self-imposed boundaries for play, their willingness to spend to feed their habit, and more," said Marj Calinog, VP, Business Development. "Overall, we found a group completely engaged with play but one with definite 'rules' and opinions as well as concerns about the future. The findings hold great implications and opportunities for developers wanting to increase game loyalty and brands and advertisers seeking a meaningful presence in social gaming."

As brands gather to discuss how companies can capitalize on the social gaming space, Q Interactive, specializing in social media monetization solutions for advertisers and developers, specifically shares how women engage with social media / games. This marks the company's third recent proprietary research study from its "Women's Channel."

Finding: "I Embrace My Inner Gamer!"

• Of those surveyed, 42 percent consider themselves "gamers" and seven percent deem themselves "obsessed."
• For 67 percent, one to five hours per week is "socially acceptable"; however, 26 percent feel six or more hours per week is socially acceptable.
• Nearly 45 percent of those surveyed have friends they consider "obsessed" with social media gaming.
• Approximately 16 percent of those surveyed "hide" or "sometimes hide" their gaming habits.

Finding: "There are Gaming Faux Pas – But I Set Boundaries for Myself"

• Over two-thirds of those surveyed believe there are "stigmas" associated with gaming. For those women, the leading stigma is:
  • "Games are addictive" (24 percent)
  • "Play makes you neglectful of other areas of your life" (21 percent)
  • "Gaming is a waste of time" (17 percent.)
• Play at work is basically off limits: 93 percent of those surveyed share they primarily play at home versus work.

Finding: "I Won't Pay – No Matter How Much I Love a Game"

• More than half of women surveyed – 54 percent – "fear" more games will make gamers pay in the future.
• If forced to pay, 77 percent would give up the game, while:
  • 10 percent would prefer a monthly subscription or fee
  • 10 percent would prefer a pay-as-I-go system
  • Two percent would prefer a separate payment scenario for each game played

Finding: "My Kids Are Active in Social Media Gaming – But They are Not Paying"

"What we have found is moms and kids are both wired into social media gaming, however, mom has a heavy hand in kids' play; she is actively supervising the time her kids play and what they spend," said Christopher Sherman, CEO and Founder of the Engage! Expo.

• Overall kids (children under 18 years old) are connected: 16 percent of moms say their children have a smart phone.
• According to mom, 40 percent of kids are allowed to play daily, 37 percent weekly, and 10 percent monthly.
• Generally speaking, kids are banned from the wallet: 80 percent are not allowed to pay for social media gaming.

See Q Interactive @ Virtual Goods Conference @ Engage! Expo

Booth Number 66 / Marj Calinog, VP, Business Development @ 312.224.5127, [email protected]

For Complete Study Results:

• Contact: Emily Girolamo @ 312.224.5151, [email protected]

About Q Interactive

For over 14 years, Q Interactive [www.qinteractive.com] – the largest offer network on the Internet, has been monetizing web site traffic by providing relevant offers to consumers. Leveraging its breadth of experience in performance marketing, Q Interactive offers a virtual currency monetization solution for social applications and games. Using its proprietary yield management system, Q Interactive generates superior yields for application and game developers while providing an excellent user experience and unparalleled customer service.

Q Interactive monetizes over 80 million visits every year for top publisher sites such as About.com, iVillage, and Weather.com and thousands more, while providing unique content from top brands, including nearly half of the nation's top 100 advertisers as ranked by Advertising Age, such as Procter & Gamble, Sears and PepsiCo.

For advertisers, Q Interactive's virtual currency solution increases consumer engagement and loyalty in social placements while ensuring brand integrity and high lead quality.

Q Interactive's "Women's Channel" Proprietary Studies:

• Co-Presented with Agency.com and ad:tech Chicago: "Women to eWomen: Conquering 'The Digital Disconnect'"
• Co-Presented with Social Media World Forum: "The Rise of Women, Social Gaming & Brand Engagement"
• Co-Presented with Engage! Expo: "The Social Graces of Social Gaming for Women"

For more information on past studies, contact Emily Girolamo @ 312.224.5151 (o,) [email protected].

About the Engage! Expo

The Engage! Expo exhibit hall places leading technology solution providers in front of the biggest names in the toy industry and children's entertainment business, who need to evolve and establish "digital play" and engaging development and product expertise. The Engage! Expo exhibit hall provides key demonstrations of the latest tools, technologies and services being used to build and monetize social games, virtual worlds, web-connected and wireless-connected toys, mobile applications, youth web sites, and interactive entertainment. Engage! allows companies to test drive new technologies in an efficient way -- rather than spending weeks and months on conference calls and meeting with vendors. Through a partnership between Engage! and Toy Fair, the full 25,000 attendees registered for either show will have full access to both show expo floors.

Registration Information

The conference registration price is only $795 until February 12, 2010. Expo-Only passes, good for both Engage! Expo and Toy Fair, are available for $100.  The prices go up onsite. Onsite registration starting February 14th at the Javits center is available for $1,295 for the full conference and $200 for the Engage! and Toy Fair expo halls. Registration is available at www.EngageExpo.com

About Engage Digital Media

Engage! Expo is owned and operated by Engage Digital Media, a leading producer of trade events and media that focus on user engagement, virtual worlds and games. Events include Engage! Expo, Digital Law Conference, Virtual Goods Conference, and the Virtual Worlds Conference and Expo. The company also publishes timely market research and leading industry news blogs www.VirtualWorldsNews.com and www.VirtualGoodsNews.com. Engage! and Engage! Expo are trademarks of Engage Digital Media. More information can be found at www.EngageDigitalMedia.com.

SOURCE Q Interactive