Survey
Finds
Women
Own
More
Game
Consoles
Than
Men
by
Douglas
Quenqua,
Monday,
Sep
24,
2007
6:00
AM
ET
ARE
MALE
VIDEO
GAME
ENTHUSIASTS
actually
outnumbered
by
their
female
counterparts
in
the
U.S.?
Do
most
of
the
Xboxes,
Wii's
and
PlayStations
in
this
country
actually
belong
to
women?
Conventional
wisdom
would
say
no--but
a
new
survey
from
JWT
suggests
otherwise.
Of
the
more
than
1,000
respondents
to
the
Denizens
of
Digitivity
survey,
released
last
week,
44%
of
women
said
they
own
a
gaming
console
such
as
a
Wii,
Xbox
or
PlayStation,
compared
with
just
39%
of
men.
The
survey
was
conducted
online
from
Sept.
7-11.
Whether
or
not
the
findings
are
indicative
of
the
general
U.S.
population,
they
are
further
evidence
that
the
stereotype
of
the
U.S.
gamer--18-
to-34-year-olds,
single,
white
and
male--is
not
necessarily
on
target.
Indeed,
the
findings
echo
a
2006
JWT
trend
newsletter
that
explored
the
rising
role
of
the
female
player
in
gamer
culture.
While
women
are
only
a
small
percentage
of
the
audience
for
violent
blockbusters
like
"Halo,"
the
newsletter
said,
they
are
increasingly
taking
part
in
dance
and
music
games,
making
them
a
fast-growing
segment
of
the
gamer
population.
"The
idea
of
gaming
being
just
for
the
18-34
male
set
is
now
out
of
date,"
said
Ann
Mack,
director
of
trendspotting
for
JWT.
"You're
seeing
women
playing
games
like
'Dance
Dance
Revolution'
and
'Guitar
Hero'--women
under
35
who
want
to
do
something
fun
and
social."
Mack
also
noted
the
impact
that
the
Nintendo
Wii,
a
console
aimed
at
casual
gamers
seeking
a
more
social
experience,
has
had
on
the
female
player.
"The
Wii
has
really
caused
a
democratization
of
gaming,
because
that
has
opened
it
up
to
all
generations
and
both
genders,"
Mack
said.
The
video
game
market
has
been
pulling
an
ever-widening
share
of
U.S.
advertising
dollars
in
recent
years,
and
the
influx
of
female
gamers
will
likely
shape
how
those
dollars
are
spent.
And
while
marketers
are
probably
not
paying
enough
attention
to
the
female
player
market
right
now,
Mack
said,
they
should
be
careful
not
to
move
too
fast,
either.
"The
money
is
where
the
hardcore
gamers
are.
They're
the
ones
who
are
really
passionate
about
it
and
the
ones
who
are
going
to
go
out
and
buy
the
beta
version
in
order
to
be
part
of
the
next
'Halo'
game,"
she
said.
"But
more
and
more,
as
these
consumers
groups
open
up,
[marketers]
will
focus
on
these
growing
segments."
The
survey
also
found
that
a
slight
majority
of
respondents
(55%)
could
imagine
"feeling
OK"
without
an
Internet
connection
for
a
few
days
at
most;
and
only
about
a
fifth
more
than
that
(18%)
could
go
without
access
for
a
full
week.
"The
survey
shows
that
time
spent
with
new
digital
technologies
eats
not
only
into
time
spent
with
traditional
media
but
also
into
physical
activity,
face-to-face
socializing
and
even
sex,"
it
stated.
The
research
also
suggested
that
women
are
slightly
more
likely
to
own
a
digital
camera
than
men,
men
and
under-35
are
most
likely
to
use
WiFi
networking
at
home,
and
men
are
more
likely
than
women
to
access
the
Web
from
outside
the
home.
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