2009 E3 EXPO SHOWCASES LATEST IN VIDEO GAME CREATIVITY, INNOVATION
 Last week at the Los Angeles Convention Center the Entertainment Software Association hosted the annual E3 Expo, the premier showcase for the computer and video game industry's most innovative new products. For the 14th year, the event treated publishers and developers, business executives, and media members to a wide variety of exhibits, speeches, and charitable activities.
Over 41,000 people from 78 countries passed through the E3 Expo gates over the course of the three-day event, which featured products from 216 exhibitors.
In addition, ESA President and CEO Michael Gallagher took the opportunity to address the gathering. Entitled, "Leading the Entertainment Industry through a Difficult Economy," the speech acknowledged the challenges that many video game companies currently face, but emphasized that the industry's solid foundation leaves no doubt about its bright future.
"As everyone in this room knows, our business cycle is such that we always close the year faster and stronger than any other form of media. Nearly 45 percent of our industry revenues come during the fourth quarter," Gallagher said. "More importantly, our interactive community, artistic creativity, entertainment quality and superior technology – a combination of attributes unique in the entertainment industry – have captured the hearts, minds, and imaginations of entertainment-hungry consumers."
Gallagher impressed upon his audience entertainment software's pre-eminent, envied status across the greater entertainment industry. As evidence, he cited NPD Group research showing that consumers in March 2009 spent one of every three entertainment dollars on video games, more than they spent on any other form of entertainment. He also highlighted a Nielsen PreView report that revealed that gamers spent 64 billion minutes playing video games last December, ranking behind only the four largest television networks in usage time.
Referring to the increasing frequency with which movies, music, and books seek to align themselves with the video game industry, Gallagher remarked, "Each such innovation or partnership further blurs the line that divides the entertainment mediums. No longer merely a packaged-goods business, video games serve as the central hub for this integration. Accordingly, our industry must use this unique position as a springboard to the next phase in video games' evolution in the entertainment world."
To view the full text of Michael Gallagher's remarks, please visit: http://www.theesa.com/newsroom/2009_SOI.pdf.
ESA RELEASES VIDEO GAME INDUSTRY'S 2009 ESSENTIAL FACTS
 At this month's E3 Expo, the Entertainment Software Association released its Essential Facts About the Computer and Video Game Industry 2009. The survey reveals some interesting news about the prevalence of computer and video games in American homes. Sixty-eight percent of American households report playing computer and video games, an increase of three percent in the last year. Moreover, 42 percent of American households now have a video game console; in 2008, only 38 percent did. These encouraging findings are one more indication of what news reports and sales figures have been telling us for several years now: more and more Americans are becoming gamers every day.
Additionally, Essential Facts revealed that adult gamers have been playing computer or video games for 12 years on average. The decrease from 13 years in 2008 indicates the influx of new gamers as the entertainment software industry continues to attract gamers of all ages and backgrounds.
The survey also found interesting statistics about parental attitudes toward the computer and video games their children play. Sixty-three percent of parents who have children under 18 with a gaming console believe games are a positive part of their children's lives. Those parents are present when games are purchased or rented 92 percent of the time, and they report always or sometimes monitoring the games their children play 94 percent of the time. These findings confirm that parents are increasingly involved in their family's video game activities.
In fact, many parents are now picking up a controller and joining their kids. When the survey asked parents why they play video games with their children, parents responded that "it's a fun activity for the entire family" (82 percent), "because their child asks them to" (81 percent), "it's a good opportunity to socialize with their child" (78 percent) and "it's a good opportunity to monitor the content of the games their kids play" (63 percent).
The ESA releases Essential Facts on an annual basis. The research was conducted by Ipsos-MediaCT and is the most in-depth and targeted survey of its kind, gathering data from almost 1,500 households that have been identified as owning either or both a video game console or a personal computer used to run entertainment software.
Essential Facts provides a scientific look at where the computer and video game industry is headed. Based on the numbers, games will continue to grow as the leading entertainment medium and a popular family entertainment option for years to come.
VIDEO GAME COMPANIES AND GAMING BLOGGERS ARE GLUED TO TWITTER
 From Congress to CNN, everybody's talking about Twitter. Due to recent media exposure and a cadre of high-profile celebrity users, such as Oprah and Ashton Kutcher, this microblogging service and social network quadrupled its total audience over the last two months.
Video game companies, gaming bloggers and ESA have taken note. Wading into the waters of 140 character updates, called "tweets," has produced interesting results for those willing to take the plunge.
Several of ESA's member companies, including Electronic Arts, have taken advantage of Twitter to spread word-of-mouth buzz about new products and to answer questions from their consumers. In anticipation of Mother's Day, Electronic Arts utilized its Twitter handle, @EA, to ask their followers to tell them why their mothers deserved a year of pogo. Electronic Arts announced their ten favorite responses via @EA and sent each winner a code to retrieve their prize.
For this year's E3 Expo, the ESA launched the @E3Expo Twitter handle to keep E3 Expo attendees informed of news and information surrounding the high profile event. As a result of the handle's growing popularity, the association held a much-anticipated Tweet Up (an in-person gathering of Twitter users) at the E3 Expo's Into the Pixel gallery opening for @E3Expo Twitter followers.
The Video Game Voters Network (VGVN) is also utilizing Twitter (@videogamevoters) to notify members of alerts, keep them informed of the latest developments regarding legislation and share positive stories about video games.
While 2009 may feel like "The Year of Twitter," according to a report from Nielsen Online, many new Twitter users are tempted by the novelty of microblogging but quickly lose interest. With a retention rate below 30%, Twitter has a steep hill to climb towards building a dedicated following similar to Facebook's, which retains more than 60% of its users. Nevertheless, don't expect the Twitter hype to disappear anytime soon. |
