AARP – videogaming and seniors
Cut and pasted from an Entertainment Software Association 6/8/16 email.
The Entertainment Software Association (ESA) recently interviewed Jo Ann Jenkins, CEO of AARP, about the growing popularity of video gaming among people 50 and older. Thanks for speaking with us, Jo Ann. Could you introduce yourself and your work? Hello, I am the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of AARP, the world’s largest nonprofit, nonpartisan membership organization dedicated to social change and helping people 50 and over to improve the quality of their lives. I came to AARP six years ago following a 25-year career in the federal government, most recently as Chief Operating Officer at the Library of Congress. I began my AARP career as President of AARP Foundation, AARP’s charitable arm which assists millions of vulnerable Americans age 50 and older in the areas of hunger, income, housing and isolation. In 2013, I became AARP’s Chief Operating Officer, and in September 2014, I took over as CEO. I recently published my first book, Disrupt Aging: A Bold New Path to Living Your Best Life at Every Age to change the conversation in this country about what it means to get older. I believe we need to challenge outdated beliefs and spark new solutions so more people can adapt more fully to the new reality of aging in the 21st century, and that’s what Disrupt Aging does. One of those outdated beliefs is around game play, right? When most people think of video gaming, they think of Millennials, they don’t think of aging Boomers. That’s right. But that’s one of those outdated stereotypes that doesn’t match reality. The new reality is that video gaming is very popular with people 50 and older. We recently conducted a survey with ESA on the attitudes and habits of video gamers age 50-plus. We found that 41 million Americans age 50 and older—that’s one in three—play video games on a regular basis. Three-fourths of them play weekly, and four in ten play daily. And, among gamers age 60 and older, 43 percent play video games every day. “Games” is also one of the most popular sections on our website, aarp.org, with over 1.1 million unique visitors a month. Read more » |
Gamers are a part of 60 percent of American homes; are, on average, 38 years old; and spent more than $23.5 billion on game content, hardware and accessories in 2015, according to a new report from the Entertainment Software Association (ESA). The report, 2016 Essential Facts About the Computer and Video Game Industry, examines video games’ role and influence as one of the largest entertainment industries in America. Of note, this year’s Essential Facts also showcased two increasingly popular trends in the video game industry: virtual reality and eSports. You can read the complete report here. |
