More Americans Playing Videogames than Going to the Movies

The NPD Group is well known for putting up two charts every month showing how videogame consoles and software releases perform in the United States market. But the group also does other researches related to the industry, and its newest study is saying that more American are playing videogames than are going to the movies.

The study is named “Entertainment Trends In America” and it shows that 63% of participants played at least one game in the last six months while just 53% of them chose to go out for a movie during the same period. The study does not account for those who watched movies on a home theater system or those who saw a flick on their TV as part of regular programming.

One of the reasons for the rising number of people interested in playing games is the fact that they are now more accessible than ever. The average gamer has spent a little over 38 dollars for gaming content per month, when looking at the months from January to March.

The study also shows that 31% of gamers bought a home console or a handheld in the last 12 months, while 31% of them accessed a gaming-oriented website and played something in a browser, without installing the content on their computer. 19% played a game that was already installed on their mobile, while 12% played a game on a social networking site.

Anita Frazier, who is an analyst for the NPD Group, stated that “Video games account for one-third of the average monthly consumer spending in the U.S. for core entertainment content, including music, video, games. While a portion of that share stems from the premium price of console games, we’re also seeing an overall increase in the number of people participating in gaming year-over-year.”