Teens, Mobile & Games - Lenhart Presentation to Federal Trade Commission May 2009

Teens, Mobile & Games An Overview of Pew Internet Data Amanda Lenhart FTC Brownbag May 28, 2009

Methodology
RDD surveys with teens 12 to 17 and a parent or guardian
Sept-Nov 2007 (n=700)
Nov-Feb 2008 (n=1102)
Focus groups

Teens and their tools
77% of teens 12-17 own a game console
74% of teens 12-17 own an iPod or Mp3 player
71% of teens 12-17 own a cell phone
60% have a desktop or laptop computer
55% have a portable gaming device like a DS or a PSP

Mobile phone ownership growing
Mobile phone ownership is way up:
45% of 12-17 year olds had them in 2004
63% in 2006
71% in early 2008.
Computer ownership is stable at least over the past two years
88% of parents have mobile phones
75% of adults have a mobile phone
Caveat: Concept of “ownership” varies from device to device

Who has a mobile phone?
Age is very important – huge bump up in mobile phone ownership at age 14
52% of 12-13 year olds have a mobile phone
At age 14 jumps to 72%
By 17 - 84% of teens have a mobile phone
No gender differences in ownership
No significant difference in mobile phone ownership by race/ethnicity
Some differences by socio-economic status – but mostly a minor bump up in the highest income and education brackets.
Internet users more likely than non users to have a cell phone – thought 50% of non-users have a phone.

Teens and phone use
88% of teens talk to friends on a landline
67% of teens talk to friends on a cell phone
94% of teens with cell phones use them to talk to friends
58% of all teens have sent text messages
76% of teens with cell phones have sent texts
Daily:
51% of teens with cell phones talk to their friends on the cell phone every day
43% of teens send messages through online social networks daily
38% of teens send text messages to each other daily
32% of teens talk on their landline everyday
29% spend time with friends in person
26% send instant messages everyday
16% send email daily

Teens and phone use: Voice
Girls more likely to talk on any kind of phone – landline or mobile.
Age isn’t a factor in landline use
Older teens with a cell phone much more likely to talk on cell phone everyday;
Younger teens with a cell phone tend to use them for voice calls a few times a week or less
Suburban kids a little less likely to talk on cell phone everyday; no difference by locale in cell phone ownership.

Teens and text messaging
Text messaging daily up since 2006
27% of teens texted daily in 2006
38% text daily in 2008
54% of social network users have sent texts or IM through a social network site.
Girls more likely than boys to text
Older teens 15-17 also more likely to text message.
No racial/ethnic differences in texting
Slight bump up in frequency of texting by income
Not using twitter yet, via mobile or any other way.
Not really going online w/ phone; but this is changing

What teens aren’t using: Likelihood of Twitter use by age

Other mobile devices
Portable game players (Nintendo DS, PSP)
Owned predominately by younger teens 12-14 (67% vs. 44%)
Drops at age 14
Boys more likely to own (61% of boys have one, 49% of girls)
No difference in use by Race/Ethnicity or SES
PSP: Skype calling and IM, internet, RSS feeds
DS(i): Pictochat (w/in 30-65), wireless gaming (30-65ft), WiFi gaming,

97% of teens play video games
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.
October 18, 2008

Most play many games
80% of teens play five or more different game genres, and 40% play eight or more types of games.
Girls play an average of 6 different game genres; boys average 8 different types.
October 18, 2008

Game Genres
We asked about 14 different game genres
74% play racing games (NASCAR, Mario Kart)
72% play puzzle games (Tetris, Solitaire, Bejeweled)
68% play sports games (Madden, FiFA, Tony Hawk)
67% play action games (GTA, Devil May Cry, Ratchet & Clank)
66% play adventure games (Legend of Zelda, Tomb Raider)
61% play rhythm games (Guitar Hero, DDR)
59% play strategy games (Civilization, StarCraft)
49% play simulations (The Sims, Rollercoaster Tycoon)
More….
October 18, 2008

Game Genres, Cont.
49% play fighting games (Super Smash Bros, Tekken, Mortal Kombat)
47% play first person shooters (Halo, Counter-Strike, Half-Life)
36% play role playing games (Final Fantasy, Knights of the Old Republic)
32% play survival horror games (Resident Evil, Silent Hill)
21% play MMOGs
10% use virtual worlds
October 18, 2008

MMOGs and Virtual Worlds
20% of teens use MMOGs
30% of boys have played them; 11% of girls
10% of teens use virtual worlds
Boys just as likely as girls
Younger teens more likely than older teens: 13% of 12-14 year olds; 8% of 15-17 year olds.
Daily gamers more likely to play MMOGs and in Virtual worlds
Image courtesy of rosefirerising via flickr under creative commons

Thank You! Amanda Lenhart [email_address] http://www.pewinternet.org

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Teens, Mobile & Games - Lenhart Presentation to Federal Trade Commission May 2009

by Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project

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Teens, Mobile & Games - Lenhart Presentation to Federal Trade Commission May 2009 Presentation Transcript