Jackson, N.J., resident Eileen De Peri estimates she spends about $40 a month to buy "Farmville cash," buying items such as fuel so she can harvest her crops faster. It equates to a 86% increase and 31 million people, the study said. They ultimately hope that players will spend real money on virtual cash so they can buy in-game items or advance through the game faster.Īccording to the Information Solutions Group study, the percentage of social gamers who purchased virtual currency with real cash rose to 26% from 14% in January 2010. Hooking up with others online can help accomplish tasks, enriching the experience, Steinberg said.įor the companies, it's not all fun and games. If you want, you can play with family or friends. "Whether you're sitting around the house and you have 10 minutes to kill or you're at work and you're looking to spend some time on a coffee break, they are sitting there, ready and waiting to play, for free, on Facebook," Steinberg said.
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Most are free and don't take a lot of time, he said. People of all ages can play, said Scott Steinberg, chief executive of TechSavvy Global, a consulting and market analysis firm. They run on your Web browser and some are linked to applications on smartphones and tablet computers such as the iPad. There was no playing social games four or five years ago."įriends are inviting friends to games with names such as Farmville, The Sims Social and Gardens of Time. You have hundreds of millions of people playing these social games on a regular basis.
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"They are clearly the hottest or fastest growing sector of the video game market," said Garth Chouteau, a spokesman for Popcap, a software company and publisher of Bejeweled Blitz and Zuma Blitz. said daily users grew to 54 million in the fourth quarter of 2011, up 13% from the same period in 2010. had played a social media game in the previous three months, up from 28% a year earlier. In some cases, they are even spending real money, buying virtual items and boosts to progress faster.Īccording to a study last fall by Information Solutions Group, 42% of Internet users in the U.S. These days, lots of people are clicking - and playing - on Facebook for free.