Market opportunity for female-friendly mobile games

M:Metrics has just released a study that indicates an unmet appetite among females for mobile games. This is the type of research that's driving Sprint's recent category changes

M:Metrics, the industry authority on the measurement of subscriber consumption of mobile content and applications, reports that although there is an equal gender split in mobile game play, with 32 percent of females and 34 percent of males reporting they play mobile games, males are twice as likely to download a mobile game.

"Mobile game publishers and carriers should be encouraged by these findings, as they reveal that women's appetites for mobile games have not been sated by the downloadable options available on carrier decks," said Mark Donovan, vice president, product and senior analyst, M:Metrics, who will address E3 attendees at iHollywood's Next-Gen and Mobile Games Forum tomorrow. "There is a significant opportunity for the industry to provide a compelling gaming experience for women, as currently, only half of the mobile games audience is being served."

Donovan says that although 67 percent of mobile game downloaders are men, women represent 46 percent of subscribers who download mobile content across all categories, and are equally likely to pay for gender-neutral content, such as ringtones. M:Metrics found that nearly half - 48.9 percent - of survey respondents who downloaded ringtones were women.