An increasing number of console gamers are purchasing supplemental downloadable content (DLC) for titles, while downloads of full-length games are on the rise as well, according to market research firm EEDAR.
An estimated 14.5 million Xbox 360 gamers — representing 46% of the system’s total user base — have purchased DLC such as expansion packs and cheat codes through March 2011, EEDAR reports. In comparison, some 7.8 million PlayStation 3 owners (25% of the total user base) have purchased DLC.
Six in 10 console owners prefer game publishers to release downloadable content for a given title within a month of the title’s release, while 30% prefer DLC to be available within three months.
Meanwhile, nearly two-thirds of “core” game fans (64%) own at least one full-length downloadable game, compared to 45% of “casual” game fans and 51% of fans of both genres. The Xbox 360 base leads in downloadable game activity as well, with more than half of console owners purchasing at least one downloadable game in 2010.
Nearly three quarters of those who purchase downloadable games for the PlayStation 3 or Xbox 360 (74%) say they first download a demo of the game “most of the time” or “always.”
The data comes from EEDAR president Geoffrey Zatkin’s presentation at the recent Game Developers Conference.
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