Market research

[Josh]

PRESS RELEASE

News Media Impacting Video Game Market According to New Market Research Study

(Somerset, NJ, July 19, 2005) – New results from Phoenix Marketing International indicate that recent news stories about video games are having some impact with regards to consumers' purchase choice of video game software, according to David Pluchino, Senior Research Manager at Phoenix Marketing International. PhoenixMI conducted a qualitative and quantitative study to gauge consumer reaction about the slew of news events concerning video game violence and pornography.

When asked a series of agreement questions dealing with video games, more than one-third of both the general population and video game market indicated that "recent news stories about video games will make me reconsider the types of video games I purchase for myself or others."

Pluchino indicated that "more than three-quarters of households with a video game console agree that the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) is doing a good job and that it is ultimately the parents responsibility to control what their children play."

According to Pano Xinos, President, Whiplash Games Inc., "Individuals of all ages play video games because they have fun doing so otherwise there would be no video game industry. The content of each video game reflects the target audience and therefore some measure of responsibility must be accepted by both consumers (including parents) as well as the retail and video game industry."

The phrase "video games are training tools" has been brought up in many news stories lately. When asked about this, slightly more than half (54%) of video game consumers agreed with the following statement "video games should be taken for what they are; entertainment, not so-called 'training tools'". More than two-thirds of respondents agreed with the statement "video games are not just for kids, adults have the right to play sometimes offensive games." Not surprising, gamers were significantly more likely than non-gamer to agree with this statement, added Pluchino.

PMI is one of the premier marketing services firms serving the travel & entertainment, technology, financial services, automotive and consumer packaged goods sectors. Through a combination of custom market research products and services, syndicated research products such as the Electronic Gaming SCORESTM, Consumer Buying Intentions Survey and sales optimization modeling, PhoenixMI partners with clients to generate sound business and marketing opportunities and produce measurable sales results and a return-on-investment on marketing development expenses.

The results in this article are based on a market research study conducted by Phoenix Marketing International of 300 completed interviews. This sample yields a 95% confidence interval with an error margin of +/- 5.7%.

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