In a recently completed survey by Parks Associates, results clearly indicate that gamers are interested in micro transaction based free to play titles.
The consumer study of 2,000+ US internet gamers found that only ‘power gamers’ have a strong interest in subscription based MMORPG services. Social, dormant and leisure gamers were found to have significant interest in free to play, microtransaction based models. With this increased interest, Parks Associates indicates that it would be ‘very difficult’ for a new MMO to enter the market with only a subscription based model at this time.
“World of Warcraft, with over 10 million players, exceeded expectations for subscription-based MMORPGs, but it’s unlikely any other publishers will achieve the same in the near term using a subscription model,” said Yuanzhe (Michael) Cai, Director, Broadband and Gaming, Parks Associates.
The study focused on a number of issues and the results are not entirely predictable, but rather interesting. 14% of gamers NOT currently playing an MMO said that they would be interested in starting up the fun again IF they could play the game for free. Only 2% of the gamers surveyed would be interested in starting another MMO with the traditional subscription based service and fee. While this may not be the results that Activision/Vivendi (aka Blizzard and World of Warcraft) want to hear, but it IS good news for publishers such as Frogster (Runes of Magic) and Perfect World Entertainment (Perfect World) that are early adopters of the new model.
The top deterring factor to traditional subscription based MMO’s as tabulated by Parks Associates is the barrier to entry in terms of time and money. “It’s simply too high for many potential customers,” says Cai. “Free-to-play models offer flexibility, and players can choose how much they want to invest based on interest level and play patterns. Micro transaction models have the best potential to grow the U.S. MMORPG audience.”
Tags: activision, Blizzard, free to play, Frogster, internet gamers, microtransaction, MMO, mmorpgs, perfect world, subscription model, World of Warcraft
