As I reported this morning for GigaOM, a leading research firm surveying US consumers has found that 12% of the population bought a virtual item over the last 12 months, such as gifts in a social game on Facebook, virtual currency for an online world, weapon upgrades in PC/console games, etc. As I researched that figure further with the lead analyst, I asked him for a breakdown not just of virtual currency/item purchases, but virtual world usage. That led to a fascinating stat they got from their respondents:
13%, or about 1 in 8 Americans between 12-64, reported being a regular virtual world user.
That's a much larger figure than many might expect, but since it includes everything from World of Warcraft to web-based MMOs like Habbo and Club Penguin, and also Second Life (all frequently cited during surveys, the analyst told me), fairly plausible. Full breakdown of other consumer usage after the break: