Smartphone users are the biggest mobile gamers

Study finds they account for a third of all downloaded games

4 February 2009 0:48 GMT / By Verity Burns

Smartphone users account for a third of all mobile gaming downloads in America, a recent report has found.

comScore, a digital products consumer research group, has found that smartphones such as the iPhone and BlackBerry have overtaken traditional mobile phones for the first time ever in the mobile gaming stakes.

The number of people downloading mobile games in the US was up 17% year-on-year to 8.5 million.

"The rapid growth in smartphone adoption in the United States has provided a boost for mobile gaming, as 34 per cent of those downloading a game in November did so using a smartphone", said Mark Donovan, senior analyst at comScore.

The study found that the number of smartphone users downloading games nearly tripled, compared to a dip of 14% on traditional phones.

iPhone users seem to be the most keen mobile gamers, with 32.4% reporting to have downloaded a mobile game in the month of November, and iPhone games representing 14% of all downloaded mobile games in November.

"Last year, not one smartphone appeared in the top 10 devices used for mobile downloads", Donovan said. "This year, six out of 10 are smartphones, excluding devices with smartphone-like functionality, such as the Instinct and Voyager, which also make appearances".

"As the mobile phone has evolved into a better platform for both playing and merchandising games, the games being offered have also been improved, drawing in a broader user base".

Donovan added: "Over the past year, we have seen mobile gaming expand into a broadening demographic, with strongest growth among teens, who previously eschewed their mobile device in favour of handheld gaming devices, and those 35 and older".

Full tags

Gaming, Phones, Mobile phone games, iPhone, Mobile phones, BlackBerry