Report: Gaming Is the 2nd Most Popular Tablet Activity

[MikeWehner]

Report: Gaming Is the 2nd Most Popular Tablet Activity

Tablet gaming beats out Netflix and even social networking.

If you're a tablet owner, there's apparently a pretty good chance that playing games on it is one of your favorite activities - at least that's what a new report [http://static.googleusercontent.com/external_content/untrusted_dlcp/research.google.com/en//pubs/archive/38135.pdf] commissioned by Google suggests. The study had tablet owners log when, where, and with what purpose they used their slate of choice, and aside from checking email, playing games was the most popular response.

In order to claim the number two spot, gaming had to beat out social networking (3rd), listening to music (5th) watching TV/movies (6th) and web surfing (12th). Email snagging the top spot isn't entirely shocking, but I'm actually quite surprised that watching video and surfing the web are a good distance from the top.

To be fair, the sample size of the study was rather small at just 33 participants, so a larger group may have swayed the results in one way or the other. 73% of those polled owned an Apple iPad, with the remaining 27% owning various Android-based tablets. Still, it's clear that when it comes to gaming, consumers are increasingly comfortable dropping a few bucks on a mobile title and then tapping the night away.

Source: GamesIndustry [http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2012-10-23-google-report-claims-50-per-cent-fo-tablet-users-play-games]

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[Falterfire]

33 participants in the study? That's not terribly useful. Nor is it 'clear' that anything is true given a size that small.

 

[mixadj]

I will say I have been enjoying Rayman Jungle Run on my Nexus 7, and that's just a 2D game (although it uses ubiart). I wish we could get some other higher quality games on android, I need to put that quad core tegra 3 to use.

 

[cidbahamut]

This is newsworthy?

 

[Jhooud]

Huh, I would've thought the top spot would have gone to I can haz cheezburger or some such.

 

[Bobic]

Wow, 33 people across 3 places, I don't think I've ever seen such awesome comprehensiveness. Good job google.

Also, thanks for making me read (well, skim through) my first scientific report since leaving uni. That was a nice blast from the past.

 

[Dr Jones]

This is newsworthy?

If the survey had more than 33 participants it surely could be. Tablet sales are on the rise, and if videogaming on a tablet is the 2nd most time-consuming thing people who own tablets do with them, there is a great market which publishers are likely to try and claim control of (Ubisoft and EA are trying to already).

 

[CardinalPiggles]

With games being so accessible nowadays I'm not surprised. It takes very little time to open a game and have a go.

 

[Kahani]

Breaking news, stop the presses! Water is wet!

Tablet gaming beats out Netflix

Given that neither doesn't work on Android, that's hardly surprising. And given that LoveFilm doesn't either, that watching TV managed to get as high as 6th place is fairly impressive. Do these companies really not realise what a huge market they're missing out on by using silverlight of all things?