In order to give best monetization recommendations possible to its customers, online games publishers, HiPay has realized this survey in partnership with Superdata Research institute, which is specialized in the video games industry. What is « THE P(L)AYERS » ? The P(L)AYERS is the first survey which helps to understand gamers purchase motivations. It gives a complete overview about payment in the online games universe. More than a simple survey, The P(L)AYERS reveals itself as a real tool to help making decisions in the creation or the adaptation of an online game, on all subjects linked to its business model.

1. « The P(L)AYERS »
Understand Online Paying
Gamers Motivations and
Purchase Behavior
Europe edition

2. Introduction:
Survey Data

3. HiPay
A Hi-Media Company
• founded in 1996
• 198 M€ revenue in 2012
• Approximately 500 employees worldwide
• # 1 advertising network in europe
• Leading online payment provider in europe
• One of the leading website publishsers
• Publicly traded on the euronext , paris eurolist B
HI-MEDIA GROUP IN FIGURES:

4. HiPay
Key Facts
• Founded in 2003
• 107 m€ revenue in 2012
• 10 million transactions per month
• More than 20 000 active merchants
• 50 payment methods in more than 85 countries
• Over 100 employees worldwide
• Double banking license – payment service provider & e-money issuer

5. Survey Data
The survey was conducted by Superdata research institute. This used for this report was, performed in
May 2013, included 1 750 qualified respondents in France, Spain, Germany and the United Kingdom and
32 questions. Respondents were prescreened as F2P online, PC gamers who have made a purchase in
the last two months.
The questions asked covered three main topics dealing with online gaming: gaming habits, purchase
behavior, and payment method use and opinions.
Payment Methods and Examples
• Credit card: Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Carte Bleue
• Pre-paid game card: Ultimate Game Card
• Home Phone Billing
• SMS payment/Premium SMS payment
• Direct mobile phone billing or carrier billing: Zong, Boku or Mopay
• E-wallet: Google Checkout, Paypal or Hi-Pay
• Cash payments: Western Union or Boleto Bancario
• Direct debit or Bank Transfer: Sofortüberweisung, Giropay, iDEAL
or ePagado
.
Terminology & Definitions
Game Genres and Examples
• MMORPG or multiplayer online battle arena: Allods Online or League
of Legends
• Action/Adventure MMO: Aion, Rappelz
• FPS/First Person Shooter: Ghost Recon Online or Planetside
• Social: Farmville or Cityville on Facebook
• Strategy MMO: The Settlers Online or World of Tanks
• Casual: hidden object, card, or puzzle games like Candy Crush Saga
• Virtual world: Habbo, IMVU
• Sports: Football Manager
If you any questions or remarks regarding this study, please contact us. We appreciate your
feedback
Methodology

6. 1-Player Behavior:
Who is p(l)aying and
how?

7. F2P online gamer demographics
What we know about them?
46%
female
54%
male
Overall European online gamers are split
54% males and 46% females*.
However, when analyzing paying gamers
only, the group skews male.
Looking at gender distribution by country,
Spain comes the closest to a 50/50 split with
49.2% males and 50.8% females. They are
also the only country analyzed where
females outnumbered males.
Age distribution is similar across countries
with the exception of the UK. Here more
than one-quarter of online gamers are 46+,
way above the European average for this
age category
*Source: Entertainment Software Association 2012
PAYING GAMERS PROFILE

8. Online gamers sample social and
casual games
All genres played1
Genre played most frequently2
• Social, casual, and MMORPG games have the most absolute players Social, sports and
• MMORPG games make up more than half of players dedicated gaming time.
But more committed to social, sports and MMORPG games.
Strategy
7%
Casual
13%
Sports
19%
36%
22%
27%29%
18%
FPS
6%
Action
4.5%
17%
14%
17%
Social
21%
MMOR
PG
18%
Virtual
5.5%
1Q: What other types of free-to-play, online games did you play in the past 2 months? Please select all that apply.
2Q: What type of free-to-play, online game did you play most frequently in the past 2 months? Select one.

9. European online gamers
are committed players
Frequency of play1
French gamers play the most
frequently..
Spain players clock in the
least amount of game time
frequently.
53 minutes
European average daily time spent
playing F2P online games.
50% play multiple times per day and average play time is close to one hour.
Average play session length
(minutes)2 by country
1Q: How often do you play free-to-play, online games?
2Q: When you play free-to-play, online games, how long do you play?

10. 2-Purchase Behavior:
Spending habits & motivation

11. Germany spends the most, UK
the most frequently
UK has the highest spend per purchase
at 11€,
Spain has the least financially dedicated
players.
Majority of purchase sizes for all
countries fall in 1€ to 10€ range.
Under 10€ is the ideal pricing range for
online gaming purchases.
Players prefer to make multiple small
buys versus fewer large buys as seen in
retail gaming.
Spend per purchase1
9,41€Average amount spent per F2P online gaming purchase
Average across Europe, 3.6 purchases (per 2 months )under 10€
1Q: Per purchase, about how much did you spend on buying in-game items or virtual goods in the past 2 months?
2How many purchases of in-game items or virtual goods have you made in the past 2 months?
Average Spend and
number of purchases2 by
country
9,40 €
11,00 €
9,50 €
7,72 €
9,41 €
3,40
4,2
3,5 3,4
3,6
0,00 €
2,00 €
4,00 €
6,00 €
8,00 €
10,00 €
12,00 €
France UK Germany Spain Europe
Average Purchase Size Number of purchase

12. Spain and UK online gamers
willing to spend earlier
• German F2P online gamers wait it out. 27% wait months before making an in-game purchase.
• On the opposite end of the spectrum, gamers in Spain and the UK are willing to spend earlier in their
playing lifetime.
German players hold out the longest before buying.
1Q: About how long did you play before making your virtual goods or in-game items purchase?
Purchase timing by country
one day couple of days one week couple of weeks one month couple of months

13. Top reason to buy is sale pricing, rest say competitive advantage is top driver
Top two purchase drivers in France, UK and
Spain are competitive advantage and extend
game session.
German gamers motivations are driven by sales
and promotional pricing.
German gamers more price
sensitive than others
1Q: How many purchases of in-game items or virtual goods have you made in the past 2 months?
2Q: What motivated you to buy in-game items or virtual goods in the past 2 months? Check all that apply.
Purchase motivation2
Number of purchases1
3 to 5
31% 1 to 2
52%
6 to 10
11%
10+
6%

14. Social/casual gamers priorities
differ by country
When looking at purchase motivation for social and casual games, reasons by country differ , gamers playing the
same game type are motivated to spend by different reasons depending on their location.
Some similarities between France and Spain exist. Both countries’ players are driven by extending game play and
gaining a competitive advantage.
Some want more game time, others looking for leverage or more content.
1Q: What motivated you to buy in-game items or virtual goods in the past 2 months? Check all that apply. Note: Social/Casual includes social and casual gamers.
Purchase motivation:
Social/Casual gamers1

15. MMO gamers across Europe
buy for similar reasons
Unlike, casual and social players, MMO players across countries have similar purchase motivations.
Top three purchase motivators are the same for each country. Extending gameplay, competitive
advantage and sale/promotional pricing push MMO players across Europe to buy.
Regardless of location, MMO gamers buy for same top 3 reasons.
1Q: What motivated you to buy in-game items or virtual goods in the past 2 months? Check all that apply. Note: MMO includes MMORPG, MMO Adventure and MMO Strategy gamers.
Purchase motivation: MMO gamers1

16. 3-Payment
pressure points:
Payment choices

17. Payment methods vary
depending on purchase type
Alternative payment methods used more for games vs. other online purchases
Payment method used online gaming1
Payment methods used for online gaming purchase differ from those used for non-gaming online purchases.
For gaming, consumers are more likely to choose alternative payment methods, such as mobile and prepaid
cards. With these purchases, alternative payment methods take share away from credit cards and direct
debit.
Payment method used online non-gaming2
1Q: Which of the following payment methods did you use most frequently to purchase your in-game items or virtual goods?
2Q:Which payment methods do you use for your non-gaming online purchases (for example: online purchases of books, TV shows or clothing)? Check all that apply.

18. Payment choice criteria
similar across Europe
Ease of use, speed, and security most important factors in all countries.
The reasons behind payment method
choice almost indistinguishable by
country. Priorities are the same across
Europe despite regional differences in
spending and gaming habits.
1Q: Why did you use that payment method for your free-to-play, online gaming
purchases? Please select all that apply.
2Q: Why do you find the payment method you selected in the previous question
unappealing? Please select all that apply.
Some variety in top reasons to avoid
certain payment methods. Spain
concerned with processing speed
(18.2%) and security (34.5%). German
gamers avoid unpopular (20.3%)
methods.
Overspending a concern with credit
cards, home phone billing and SMS
payments.
Reasons to use a specific payment method1
Reasons to NOT use a specific payment method2

19. Reasons to avoid similar
across countries
France and Spain avoid SMS, UK and German gamers steer clear of home phone billing.
Which form of payment method for free-to-play, online games do you find least appealing or try to avoid? Select one.
Q: Why do you find the payment method you selected in the previous question unappealing? Please select all that apply.
The least favorite payment method across Europe is also the most popular: credit cards. Complaints range
from lack of spending caps, security issues and difficulty using.
Outside of credit cards, gamers avoid different payments depending on location. France and Spain cite SMS
payments because of spending concerns, security and lack of access to incentives. Germany and the UK
express their dislike for home phone billing. Gamers cite this payment method as unpopular and difficult to
dispute errors.
SMS
Avoid in Spain and France because...
Home phone billing1
Avoid UK and Germany because...

20. About
Superdata Research
Founded in 2009, SuperData provides market intelligence on free-to-play and online games. By
collecting behavioral data directly from publishers and developers, SuperData identifies key trends,
establishes revenue estimates and analyses market changes for popular online games, including
MMOs and social games.
SuperData publishes industry-relevant key performance indicators. Using our unique panel of
2,000,000 paying online gamers, we establish monthly benchmarks such as ARPPU, conversion
rates, and lifetime value. Customers use our data to evaluate their performance, identify key growth
opportunities, assess revenue potential, optimize their efforts, and better understand their audience’s
wants and needs.
SuperData’s client base includes brand owners, developers, retailers, publishers, VCs, and payment
service providers.

21. Contact:
info@hipay.com