14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft has announced that a new survey has shown that those who own an Xbox 360 home-gaming console and live in the United Kingdom have spent an average of 64 British Pounds, which is equivalent to a little over 100 dollars, on downloads from the Xbox Live Marketplace in a typical month.
The survey was carried out by Microsoft Advertising and shows that 13 percent of those who own an Xbox 360 spent even more, going over 162 dollars paid for Xbox Live Marketplace content in one month.
More than 40% of those asked said that they are playing for about three of four hours every day, with 83 percent of them playing for three or four days every week.
The survey looked at 251 Xbox 360 gamers with ages between 25 and 34, the segment of the public that is most likely to play regularly and spend money on more content from Xbox Live.
It's not clear how much of the Xbox Live content is DLC and how much is made up of actual new games.
The Microsoft Advertising survey is saying that the most popular genre among the gamers is the first-person shooter, followed by racing games and by role-playing game.
Julie Forey, who is the head of research for data and analysis at Microsoft Advertising, has stated, “Compared against the average male, gamers represent an attractive proposition for marketers. Earning a higher wage, being advocates of premium goods and over half playing for more than three hours each day, this provides firms with a profile from which they can base their message.”
The fact that Microsoft did the survey and the rather limited number of gamers questioned means that the results should be taken with a grain of salt. But it's important to note that gamers are becoming ever more interested in picking up new content via digital distribution, without having to go to the store to play something new.