Overview

Nearly two-thirds of internet users (65%) have paid to download or access some kind of online content from the internet, ranging from music to games to news articles. Music, software, and apps are the most popular content that internet users have paid to access or download, although the range of paid online content is quite varied and widespread.

In a survey of 755 internet users between Oct. 28 and Nov. 1 2010, respondents were asked about 15 different kinds of online material that could be purchased or accessed after a payment. The online content assessed in this survey includes only “intangible” digital products such as software, articles and music that need not have a physical form. This is in contrast to previous surveys which were designed to measure the use of the internet to purchase “tangible” products such as clothes, CDs, books, or computers or tangible services such as hotel reservations or airline tickets.

In this survey we asked the following question: “Please tell me if you have ever paid to access or to download any of the following types of online content?” The findings show that:

• 33% of internet users have paid for digital music online.
• 33% have paid for software.
• 21% have paid for apps for their cell phones or tablet computers.
• 19% have paid for digital games.
• 18% have paid for digital newspaper, magazine or journal articles or reports.
• 16% have paid for videos, movies or TV shows.
• 15% have paid for ringtones.
• 12% have paid for digital photos.
• 11% have paid for members-only premium content from a website that has other free material on it.
• 10% have paid for e-books.
• 7% have paid for podcasts.
• 5% have paid for tools or materials to use in video or computer games.
• 5% have paid for “cheats or codes” to help them in video games.
• 5% have paid to access particular websites such as online dating sites or services.
• 2% have paid for adult content.

And 6% of internet users said they had paid for another kind of content not mentioned in the list of 15 the survey offered.

Of those internet users who have purchased online content, nearly half (46%) have purchased only one or two of the types of content covered in our survey. Some 16% have purchased six or more types of content.

Typical user pays about $10 per month for online content

The average expense for those who have paid for content was approximately $47 per month for material downloaded or accessed, including both subscriptions (an average of $12 per month) and individual file access (an average of $22 per month). However, some extremely high-end users push the average higher, with most purchasers spending about $10 per month.

Accessing and paying for online content

Concerning methods of accessing online content, the majority of the internet users pay for subscription services (23%), versus downloading an individual file (16%), or accessing streaming content (8%).

As shown in Figure 2, most internet users who have accessed online content have utilized only one method of access and payment (66%).

Read the full report at pewinternet.org.

More than half of American adults age 18 and older (53%) play video games,¹ and about one-in-five adults (21%) play everyday or almost everyday. While the number of video gamers among adults is substantial, it is still well under the number of teens who play. Fully 97% of teens play video games.²

Independent of all other factors, younger adults are considerably more likely than older adults to play games, and the likelihood that an adult is a video gamer decreases significantly with age. Fully 81% of respondents 18-29 years old play games, while only 23% of respondents 65 years old and older report playing games.

Overall, men (55%) are slightly more likely than women (50%), and urbanites (56%) are a bit more likely than rural-dwellers (47%) to play any kind of digital game. There is no significant difference in game playing across income groups or between suburbanites and adults from other locales.

A person’s education level is another predictor of video game play. Some 57% of respondents with at least some college education play games, significantly more than high school graduates (51%) and those who have less than a high school education (40%). Current students who are 18 or older are also avid players. Notably, 76% of students (82% of full-time and 69% of part-time students) report playing games, compared with 49% of non-students.

Internet users are also significantly more likely to play games than those who are not online. Fully 75% of adults in the survey use the internet, and 64% of internet users play games. By comparison, just 20% of non-internet users play games.

Older adult gamers play games more frequently

Younger generations tend to dominate the gaming world; however, older respondents who do play games are more avid players. Older gamers, particularly seniors, tend to play games more frequently. Over one-third (36%) of gamers 65 and older say they play games everyday or almost everyday, compared with 19% of adults aged 50-64, 20% of adults aged 30-49, and 20% of adults aged 18-29. Senior gamers may play more frequently because they have more time to play than younger gamers, as 77% of senior gamers reported being retired. Almost half (49%) of all adult gamers reported playing games at least a few times a week.

Computers are the most popular equipment for video game play; consoles are the favorite gaming hardware among the youngest players.

Of the devices that can be used to play video games, computers are the most popular. Fully 38% of adults report playing games on desktop or laptop computers. This percentage compares with 28% who play on game consoles like an Xbox, PlayStation or Wii; 18% who play on a cell phone, Blackberry or other handheld organizer and 13% who play on portable gaming devices like a PSP, DS or Gameboy.

These trends contrast with the gaming experiences of teens. For those ages 12-17, game consoles are the most popular gaming device, and 89% of teen gamers use consoles to play games. Teen gamers are no more likely than adult gamers to use computers to play games, and while adult gamers are more likely to play games on cell phones or Blackberries than on portable gaming devices, teen gamers show the opposite set of preferences, preferring the portable devices to cell phones.

Like teens, a majority of young adults play games on consoles, while older gamers prefer computers.

Young adults, 18-29 year olds, are the most apt to play games on any given device. But, while computers are most popular with the total population, younger Americans are more likely to play games using a console than any other type of video game-playing device. Like their teen counterparts, a majority (61%) of respondents 18-29 years old play games on consoles, compared with 28% of all adults who use consoles to play games. Teens, however, are even more likely than young adults to play games on consoles; 86% of teens play on consoles.

If an older person is going to play games, he or she will most likely use a computer. Some 19% of seniors 65 and older play games on computers, while only 2% use each of the other devices listed. Similarly, Americans ages 50-64 are much more likely to use computers than to use gaming consoles, cell phones (6%) or portable gaming devices (5%).

When looking specifically at gamers, these age-based preferences are even more distinct. Nearly three-out-of-four gamers (73%) use computers to play, while just over half (53%) use game consoles. Gamers 50 and older are significantly more likely than younger age groups to use computers. Middle-aged gamers, 30-49 years old, prefer to play on computers, but a significantly large percentage also plays on consoles. Young adult gamers are the only age group to prefer playing on game consoles; three-fourths (75%) of 18-29-year-old gamers play on consoles.

Certain demographic groups — men, minorities and parents — use some devices more.

Men are significantly more likely than women to play games on gaming consoles: 35% of adult men say they play games on a console compared with 21% of women. Men and women are statistically equally likely to use all other gaming devices, including computers, cell phones, handheld organizers and portable gaming devices.

Blacks and Hispanics are more likely to play games on smaller, mobile gadgets. While there is no statistically significant difference in game play between ethnic groups on computers or game consoles, blacks and Hispanics are significantly more likely than whites to use cell phones and portable gaming devices to play games.³ One-quarter (25%) of blacks and 27% of Hispanics report using a cell phone or Blackberry to play games, while only 16% of whites reported doing so. Similarly, 18% of blacks and 21% of Hispanics use portable gaming devices, compared with 11% of whites who use these devices to play games.

Independent of other demographic categories, parents are more likely to play games than non-parents. Fully 66% of parents or guardians of children 17 years old or younger play games, compared with 47% of adults who are not parents who play games. Parents are also more likely to play games on every kind of device we asked about than respondents who were not parents.

Just 31% of parents of teens say they play video games with their child at least some of the time, however, and younger parents are more likely than older parents to do so. Four out of ten parents under age 40 (40%) play games with their children, compared with 25% of older parents. Parents of younger teens (12-14 years old) are also more likely to play video games with their children than parents of older teens (15-17 years old), 34% versus 27%.⁴

Online games have a modest place in the world of adult gaming.

Just under a quarter (23%) of all adults play games online. Put another way, some 43% of adult gamers play online games. Adults are much less likely to play games online than teens, as about 76% of all teens play games online and 79% of teen gamers play games online.

As with all games, younger adults are more likely to report playing games online than their older counterparts. Fully 43% of adults ages 18-29 play games online, compared with 26% of people ages 30-49, 13% of people ages 50-64 and 5% of those 65 and older.

Respondents who report playing games online tend to play more often than gamers who do not play games online. The majority (59%) of online gamers play at least a few times a week, significantly more than the 41% of strictly offline gamers who play that often. Those who play massive multiplayer online games (MMOGs),⁵ such as World of Warcraft, are even more likely to play frequently, as 89% play at least a few times a week.⁶ Nearly half (49%) of MMOG players play everyday or almost everyday, while just one-in-four online gamers (26%) and 17% of offline gamers play as often.

Virtual worlds and MMOGs have yet to catch on.

Just 2% of gamers say they have ever visited a virtual world,⁷ such as Second Life.

While there are no significant age or other demographic differences between adults who visit virtual worlds and those who do not, teens are significantly more likely to visit virtual worlds. One-in-ten teens and 11% of teen gamers reported visiting virtual worlds.

A total 6% of adults say they have created an avatar, or online representation of themselves, often used for participation in virtual worlds and in some online games and social networks.

Slightly more game players, however, say that they have played MMOGs. Still, only 9% of gamers play these types of online games. Again, young adults are significantly more likely than average adults to play MMOGs, as 14% of 18-29-year-old gamers report playing these types of games. Teens are even more likely to play MMOGs, with 21% of teen gamers reporting MMOG play.

Find methodology and topline survey results at pewinternet.org.

Notes

¹ Unless otherwise noted, any reference to video games, game playing or the term ‘gamer’ in this report refers to any respondent who reported playing games online and/or said he used any one or more of the following devices to play games: desktop or laptop computer, game console, cell phone, Blackberry, some other handheld organizer or a portable gaming device.

² All teen data in this report is based on a survey of 1,102 teens (1,064 teen gamers) conducted November 2007-February 2008, with a margin of error of +/-3%. For more information about teens and gaming, see “Teens, Video Games and Civics” (Pew Internet & American Life Project, September 2008).

³ For comparative data for teens, please see page 14 in our Teens, Video Games and Civics report http://www.pewinternet.org/PPF/r/263/report_display.asp

⁴ “Teens, Video Games and Civics” (Pew Internet & American Life Project, September 2008)

⁵ Massive multiplayer online games (MMOGs), or massive(ly) multiplayer online role-playing games, are online game spaces where multiple individuals can play a game together. While gamers can go anywhere within the digital world of an MMOG, the game developer has determined the direction and goals of game play. MMOGs are persistent spaces where game play continues to move forward even when an individual or group of players is not playing the game.

⁶ The total unweighted number of those who play MMOGs is less than 100 (n=83).

⁷ Virtual worlds, like MMOGs, are persistent online play spaces, but unlike with MMOGs, the user of a virtual world determines the direction of game play.

Video games provide a diverse set of experiences and related activities and are part of the lives of almost all teens in America. To date, most video game research has focused on how games impact academic and social outcomes (particularly aggression). There has also been some exploration of the relationship between games and civic outcomes, but as of yet there has been no large-scale quantitative research. This survey provides the first nationally representative study of teen video game play and of teen video gaming and civic engagement. The survey looks at which teens are playing games, the games and equipment they are using, the social context of their play, and the role of parents and parental monitoring. Though arguments have been made about the civic potential of video gaming, this is the first large-scale study to examine the relationship between specific gaming experiences and teens’ civic activities and commitments.

Video gaming is pervasive in the lives of American teens — young teens and older teens, girls and boys, and teens from across the socioeconomic spectrum. Opportunities for gaming are everywhere, and teens play video games frequently. When asked, half of all teens reported playing a video game “yesterday.” Those who play daily typically play for an hour or more.

Fully 97% of teens ages 12-17 play computer, web, portable, or console games. Additionally:

• 50% of teens played games “yesterday.”
• 86% of teens play on a console like the Xbox, PlayStation, or Wii.
• 73% play games on a desktop or a laptop computer.
• 60% use a portable gaming device like a Sony PlayStation Portable, a Nintendo DS, or a Game Boy.
• 48% use a cell phone or handheld organizer to play games.

Game playing is ubiquitous among Americans teenagers. Fully 99% of boys and 94% of girls report playing video games. Younger teen boys are the most likely to play games, followed by younger girls and older boys. Older girls are the least “enthusiastic” players of video games, though more than half of them play. Some 65% of daily gamers are male; 35% are female.

Most teens do not limit themselves to just a few game genres, instead choosing to play many different types of games. Daily gamers are more likely to play a wider range of game genres than non-daily gamers.

• 80% of teens play five or more different game genres, and 40% play eight or more types.
• 55% of daily gamers play eight or more types of games; just 33% of less frequent gamers do so.
• Girls play an average of 6 different game genres; boys average 8 different types.

The most popular games played by teens today span a variety of genres and ratings. The five most popular are Guitar Hero, Halo 3, Madden NFL, Solitaire, and Dance Dance Revolution. These games include rhythm games (Guitar Hero and Dance Dance Revolution), puzzle/card games (Solitaire), sports games (Madden), and first-person shooter games (Halo).

The ratings of these games range from E-rated “Everyone” games (Solitaire and Dance Dance Revolution), deemed suitable by the ratings board for players of all ages, to games rated Mature (M) for violence, blood and gore, and language (Halo). The range of genres spanned by the most popular games played by teens indicates they are not simply playing violent first-person shooters or action games. However, boys are more likely than girls to report playing these specific violent M-rated games.

• The average rating of all “favorite” games mentioned by survey respondents averaged just above a T, or Teen rating
• 50% of boys name a game with an M or A/O rating as one of their current top three favorites, compared with 14% of girls.

For most teens, gaming is a social activity and a major component of their overall social experience. Although most teens play games by themselves at least occasionally, just one-quarter (24%) of teens only play games alone, and the remaining three-quarters of teens play games with others at least some of the time.

• 65% of game-playing teens play with other people who are in the room with them.
• 27% play games with people who they connect with through the internet.
• 82% play games alone, although 71% of this group also plays with others.

And nearly 3 in 5 teens (59%) play games in multiple ways — with others in the same room, with others online, or alone.

• 42% of teens who play games in multiple ways say they play most often with others in the same room.
• 42% of teens who play games in multiple ways most often play alone.
• 15% of teens who play games in multiple ways play most often with those they are connected to via the internet.

Online gamers are more likely to report playing games mostly with people they know in their offline lives than with teens they met online. Of teens who play games online with others:

• 47% of teens play online games with people they know in their offline lives.
• 27% of teens play online games with people they first met online.
• 23% of teens play with both friends and family known in the offline world and people they met online.

Teens may encounter both pro-social and anti-social behavior while gaming. As discussed above, games are often played with others. In multiplayer game play, different people control different characters in the game, and make individual choices about how to act and what to say in the context of the game. Nearly two-thirds (63%) of teens who play games report seeing or hearing “people being mean and overly aggressive while playing,” and 49% report seeing or hearing “people being hateful, racist, or sexist” while playing. However, among these teens, nearly three-quarters report that another player responded by asking the aggressor to stop at least some of the time. Furthermore, 85% of teens who report seeing these behaviors also report seeing other players being generous or helpful while playing. We found no relationship between parental monitoring and teens’ exposure to these experiences.

The most popular game genres include both games with violent content and games with nonviolent content. The two most widely played game genres were racing and puzzle games, played by nearly three-quarters of teens in the sample. These genres are noteworthy because they have little to no violent content. However, two-thirds of teens reported playing “action” or “adventure” games, some of which contain considerable violent content.

• 32% of gaming teens report that at least one of their three favorite games is rated Mature or Adults Only.
• 79% of M- and AO-rated game players are boys, and 21% are girls.
• 12- to 14-year-olds are equally as likely to play M- or AO-rated games as their 15- to 17-year-old counterparts.

While most parents engage in some form of monitoring, parents are more likely to monitor game play for boys and for younger children. Monitoring, as mentioned above, does not have an impact on whether or not teens are exposed to anti-social behavior or words in the gaming context. Among parents of gamers:

• 90% of parents say they always or sometimes know what games their children play.
• 72% say they always or sometimes check the ratings before their children are allowed to play a game.
• 46% of parents say they always or sometimes stop their kids from playing a game.
• 31% of parents say they always or sometimes play games with their children.

Parents of teens who play games are generally neutral on the effect of games on their children, with nearly two-thirds believing that games have no impact one way or the other on their offspring.

• 62% of parents of gamers say video games have no effect on their child one way or the other.
• 19% of parents of gamers say video games have a positive influence on their child.
• 13% of parents of gamers say video games have a negative influence on their child.
• 5% of parents of gamers say gaming has some negative influence/some positive influence, but it depends on the game.

Civic dimensions to video game play.

This study found that the quantity of game play is not strongly or consistently related to most civic outcomes, but that some particular qualities of game play have a strong and consistent positive relationship to a range of civic outcomes.

Neither the frequency of game play nor the amount of time young people spend playing games is significantly related to most of the civic and political outcomes that we examined — following politics, persuading others how to vote, contributing to charities, volunteering, or staying informed about politics and current events. There is little evidence to support the concern that playing video games promotes behaviors or attitudes that undermine civic commitments and behaviors. At the same time, there is little evidence to support the idea that playing video games, in general, is associated with a vibrant civic or political life. The frequency of gaming was related to only two civic and political outcomes — political interest and protesting — with differences only emerging between the highest and lowest frequency of game play.

However, the characteristics of game play and the contexts in which teens play games are strongly related to teens’ interest and engagement in civic and political activities. Longitudinal and quasi-experimental studies have identified a set of civic learning opportunities (such as simulations of civic or political activities, helping others, and debating ethical issues) that promote civic outcomes among youth. Many of these civic learning opportunities parallel particular elements of video game play. We call these elements of game play “civic gaming experiences,” and the survey assesses how many of these experiences teens had. Teens were categorized into three groups — those with the least civic gaming experiences, those with average civic gaming experiences, and those with the most civic gaming experiences. Teens with the most (top 25%) civic gaming experiences were more likely to report interest and engagement in civic and political activities than teens with the fewest (bottom 25%).

Playing games with others in person was related to civic and political outcomes, but playing with others online was not. Among teens who play games with others in the room:

• 65% go online to get information about politics, compared to 60% of those who do not.
• 64% have raised money for charity, compared to 55% of those who do not.
• 64% are committed to civic participation, compared to 59% of those who do not.
• 26% have tried to persuade others how to vote in an election, compared to 19% of those who do not.

• Teens who take part in social interaction related to the game, such as commenting on websites or contributing to discussion boards, are more engaged civically and politically. Among teens who write or contribute to these game-related websites:
• 18% have protested in the last 12 months, compared to 8% of those who play games but do not contribute to online gaming communities.
• 38% have tried to persuade others how to vote in an election, compared with 22% of those who play games but do not contribute to online gaming communities.
• 68% have raised money for charity, compared with 61% of those who play games but do not contribute to online gaming communities.
• 67% stay informed about current events, compared with 58% of those who play games but do not contribute to online gaming communities.
• 63% are interested in politics, compared with 54% of those who play games but do not contribute to online gaming communities.
• 74% are committed to civic participation, compared with 61% of those who play games but do not contribute to online gaming communities.

Civic gaming experiences are more equally distributed than many other civic learning opportunities. Teens in this sample were equally likely to report having civic gaming experiences regardless of race, age, or income. Girls, who play a narrower band of games and spend less time gaming, were less likely to have these experiences. This stands in contrast to findings about the equality of access to civic learning experiences in high schools. Previous research has found that high school civic learning opportunities tend to be unequally distributed, with higher-income, higher-achieving, and white students experiencing more opportunities than their counterparts.¹

Read the full report at pewinternet.org.

Notes

¹ Kahne, J., and E. Middaugh, “Democracy for Some: The Civic Opportunity Gap in High School,” Circle Working Paper 59 (Washington, DC: Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement, 2008).