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    Survey Shows Economy Has Powerful Impact on Online Casual Gaming Behavior

    Thursday, April 5th, 2012

    IRVINE, Calif., April 4, 2012 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ –
    ArcadeWeb, a highly-trafficked site where casual gamers play for free and can compete to win daily cash prizes, today released key findings from a national survey of its online gamers. Recently conducted among 1,435 casual, tournament players at its site,[1] the survey was specifically designed to provide insight into how the current economy is impacting diverse aspects of casual gamers’ behavior – whether time spent playing, or their current and planned online gaming spend.

    “The online casual gamers we surveyed clearly indicate that a still-tough economy is having a significant impact on their current gaming behavior. Not only do they report playing more – which is great news for the industry – it seems to be fueling the momentum behind the hottest, fastest-growing gaming category, ‘freemium’ or free-to-play models,” said Adriano Parrotta, VP, Social Games, ArcadeWeb.com.

    Key Findings:

    Post-Recession? Not According to Gamers

    While pundits talk of economic recovery, it’s apparently not being experienced by the casual gamers surveyed: 82% claim they have as many (35%), or more (47%), financial challenges than they did two years ago.

    Bad Economy Increasing Time Spent Gaming

    The majority (53%) of gamers surveyed report that current economic conditions are directly impacting their gaming habits, with 66% (of that majority) reporting that the economy has led them to spend more time with online gaming in general. More men (62%) than women (48%) – and more people in the western U.S. (58%) than any other region – claim the economy has changed their gaming behavior.

    Gamers Seek Stress-Relief, Free Entertainment and To Win Money

    The site’s casual gamers were polled on why they’re playing more now, and the top three reasons were:

    1) stress relief (32%), 2) it’s free, fun entertainment (29%), and 3) because free, new tournament sites allow me to compete to win money (25%).

    So, for more than half of gamers surveyed, the “free” aspect is driving increased time-spent-gaming. One in four reports that it’s the rise of free sites, where they can also compete to win money, that’s increasing their time spent playing. “Stress relief” generally ranked higher for older gamers, while “free entertainment” and the rise of more “free, new tournament sites” ranked highest for the young, under-24 set.

    The State of Virtual Currency Purchases:

    The survey measured virtual goods purchasing patterns by age, gender and region. Overall, 68% report they have never spent money on virtual currency/credits at online gaming sites (while 32% have). And while these new findings concur with other recent research showing that younger and male gamers were more likely to purchase virtual currency, the age/gender gap was not as wide as is typically reported.[2]

    1 in 3 Have Bought Virtual Currency – No Major Age or Gender Gap
    Overall Men Women Age 18-34 35-44 45-54 55-64
    Have Purchased 32% 36% 30% 34% 39% 28% 30%

    Thirty percent of female, and 36% of male gamers - and 34% of those aged 18-34, and 30% aged 55-64 - have made virtual currency purchases. Gamers in the West (41%) were most likely to have ponied up for virtual currency, while the Midwest (27%) and Southeast (29%) regions reported the lowest rates of virtual currency purchases.

    Gamers Plan Big Spending Cuts

    Gamers who reported they currently spend money on online games (whether virtual currency, subscriptions, etc.) were asked about their plans for the year ahead. Fifty-eight percent reported they plan to cut their online gaming spend (49% significantly), with only 7% projecting they would spend more.

    Planned Virtual Currency/Online Gaming Spend - 2012
    Significantly Less Somewhat Less Same Somewhat More Significantly More
    49% 9% 35% 4% 3%

    And for both men and women - all age groups from 18 to over-64 - and across all U.S. regions, at least 40% of gamers surveyed plan "significant" online gaming spending cuts in 2012.

    Given this powerful spend-aversion, it was not surprising that 84% of gamers report they prefer totally free, ad-supported gaming sites, vs. the 16% that prefer pay-for-play sites with no ads.

    "Because the virtual currency purchasing model is now so widespread at many huge, 'free' casual sites on Facebook and beyond, that spend should grow somewhat overall in 2012," noted Parotta. "But our survey reveals a powerful resistance to pay-for-play models by casual gamers, and real traction for models that are 'purely free,' or even 'beyond free' - sites that offer users free games and a chance to win real rewards or money."

    About ArcadeWeb:

    Launched in mid-2011, ArcadeWeb has rapidly become one of the largest, most highly-trafficked gaming sites on the Web, and is one of the only sites to offer hundreds of free casual games, and a chance for gamers to compete in daily tournaments to win real cash prizes. The site awards up to $50,000 every month in cash prizes to its users. McAfee-, Verisign- and TRUSTe-certified, ArcadeWeb guarantees complete gamer privacy protection.

    Media Contacts: Melanie Webber, mWEBB Communications, (424) 603-4340, melanie@mwebbcom.com Angela Jacobson, mWEBB Communications, (714) 454-8776, angela@mwebbcom.com

    [1] ArcadeWeb's snapshot survey was conducted among registered, tournament-playing members at its casual, tournament-style site in February-March 2012.

    [2] A recent Magid Advisors survey (1/2012) found that teen boys and young men were almost twice as likely as women to buy virtual items.

    SOURCE ArcadeWeb.com

    Copyright (C) 2012 PR Newswire. All rights reserved

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    Turkish coup leaders fail to appear in court for health reasons

    Thursday, April 5th, 2012

    I never really thought that one day I would see this, added Birand.

    Evren, now 94, led the overthrow of the Turkish government when he ordered tanks out into the streets of the capital in the predawn hours of September 12, 1980.

    Evren appeared in uniform on Turkish state television later that afternoon and made the following announcement: My dear citizens, I would like to state one more time that armed forces had to take over the administration for the welfare and happiness that the dear Turkish nation deserved, for the unity of the country and nation, to renew the strength and functionality of Ataturk principles which were tried to be made less effective, to place democracy that cannot control itself on firm foundations, to restore the state authority which had been lost.

    The military overthrow brought an end to years of bloody killings between right- and left-wing Turkish militants, and many prominent voices in Turkey and abroad initially welcomed the coup. A passage from Turkey Unveiled, a History of Modern Turkey recalls: The cover of Time magazine showed a paternalistic portrait of General Evren clasping a collage of the Istanbul skyline in his arms with the caption Holding Turkey Together.

    At the beginning, everyone said, Oh my God, thank God that they saved us, Birand recalled. But six months later, everything changed and this was the worst-case scenario.

    In the aftermath of the military takeover, accounts of appalling human rights violations began to emerge, as hundreds of thousands of people were thrown in jail, many of them tortured. The military junta also disbanded political parties, jailed senior politicians and sentenced hundreds of people to death. Longtime Turkey-watchers argue Turkish society is still struggling with the consequences of the coup.

    September 12th is the mother of all coups in Turkeys history, said Yasemin Congar, columnist and deputy editor of the Turkish daily newspaper Taraf. It damaged the whole country and probably caused incurable damage on one whole generation of the youth in this society.

    It brought Turkish politics back to the kindergarten, said Hugh Pope, co-author of Turkey Unveiled.

    (Evren) somehow wanted to force the politicians to be less conflictual, but he did so by dumbing them down to the point that Turkeys political system is still recovering from it … unfortunately the consequences of his actions ruined so many peoples lives. One has to wonder how Turkey is going to deal with that.

    After stepping down from the post of president in 1989, Evren lived for years on Turkeys Mediterranean Coast. One of his widely reported pastimes was painting. The former coup leaders works of art have even been displayed in exhibits.

    According to an article in the Turkish constitution, which was written by the military junta in 1982, Evren and his fellow officers were protected from prosecution.

    But recent constitutional changes drafted and ratified by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogans ruling Justice and Development Party cleared the way for a prosecutor to question Evren at his home last year.

    Erdogans government has also overseen the arrest and trial of dozens of other army generals accused of a much more recent military coup plot that was never successfully carried out.

    Among those arrested are retired general and army chief of staff Ilker Basbug, who commanded the Turkish armed forces until 2010. He stormed out of a courtroom outside Istanbul last week, after court officials played recordings of wiretapped phone conversations.

    Some critics have called the prosecution of these military commanders a witch hunt, targeting political opponents of Erdogans government.

    Other observers argue it has been a vital process to bring the military under the control of elected civilian leaders. Since 1960, the once politically-dominant Turkish armed forces have overthrown four governments.

    Ending the belief of impunity is very, very important, said Congar of Taraf newspaper, which has published many damning reports about the Turkish military in recent years. Its a huge step, obviously very late. These generals are very old. But its still symbolically very important for this country.

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