• by Karlene Lukovitz  @KLmarketdaily, April 17, 2023

More than two-thirds of U.S. connected TV (CTV) owners play video games, and gamers are bigger streaming subscribers and free, ad-supported streaming (FAST) services viewers than CTV owners as a whole. 

That’s according to a survey by LG Ad Solutions of more than 700 U.S. adults with a CTV who play games via a video game console, conducted online in March. 

Gamers subscribe to the major subscription streaming services at a higher rate than CTV owners as a whole, and are less likely not to have any streaming subscriptions. 

Science- and tech-focused Discovery+ is the streaming app with the highest penetration among gamers. Apple TV+, Peacock and Paramount+ also over-index among gamers. Interestingly, they are less likely to subscribe to giants Netflix and Amazon Prime Video.

Nearly two-thirds (63%) of gamers spend at least two hours a week watching free streaming apps, versus 51% of CTV owners as a whole. More than a third watch two to five hours a week, versus 27% of CTV owners as a whole. And only 37% watch less than two hours a week, compared to 50% of CTV owners as a whole. 

Gamers have a particularly strong preference for seeing ads relevant to their interests, with 80% expressing that desire versus 73% of CTV owners overall. Similarly, they are more likely to prefer seeing ads that are relevant to the streaming content they are watching (76%) than the average CTV user (63%).  

Fully 79% of those age 30 to 44 are console gamers, followed by those 18 to 29 (74%) and 45 to 60 (63%), and those over 60 (32%). Fifty-eight percent of women are console gamers, one in five play every day, and 67% play for more than four hours per week. Nearly two-thirds of female gamers (61%) prefer streaming free video content with ads, and 45% pay more attention to ads while streaming compared to ads on cable/satellite TV. 

Although 64% of gamers said they typically use video game consoles to play games (slightly fewer than the 71% who said the same about mobile), only about 23% use gaming consoles to stream video. Instead, 55% stream through their smart TV apps. 

When it comes to discovering new games, gamers cite friends and family most (51%), followed by social media (48%) and online video ads (44%), but TV/streaming ads are also important sources, at 42%. Only 16% of gamers use the TV home screen for game recommendations — possibly an under-used resource, given its first impression possibilities when turning on the TV. 

Gamers are more apt to multitask than CTV owners as a whole, with 53% playing games and 50% shopping while streaming. 

Other insights about gamers:

*One quarter play games on a daily basis, with the average gaming session lasting between 30 minutes and two hours. On average, 30% of gamers play four to seven hours per week. 

*Gaming is a social activity: 40% of gamers with children play with their kids one to three times a week and two in five gamers frequently or always play via local co-op on the same console in the same room.