World Video Game Day: Consoles in Rural Homes

General

In 5 out of 10 households (46%) in rural areas with fewer than 10,000 inhabitants that have internet access, there are video game consoles. Households with minors are the ones that use these consoles the most and where these devices are most present, reaching 63%.

This is one of the main findings from the study “Connected Rural Spain: Profile of Internet Users in Small Municipalities,” prepared by the Asteo Observatory, in collaboration with the consulting firm Random Strategy. This data has been published to coincide with World Video Game Day, celebrated every August 29 since the year 2008. This celebration seeks to honor all those who are passionate about video games around the world.

The Asteo Observatory report also shows that video game consoles are used very or quite frequently in 28% of households in rural areas, with this percentage doubling (45%) in households with minors. According to the latest data collected by the Video Game Industry Yearbook in Spain 2023, prepared by the Spanish Video Game Association, there are more than 20 million video game players. This publication reveals that the video game industry has continued to grow in our country in recent years, with a 16.3% increase in revenue compared to the previous year.

 

Have consoles in their home vs. Use the device

Console use above ebooks or virtual assistants

This growth is also visible in rural areas, where the use of video game consoles is above the use of ebooks (32%), virtual assistants (27%), or home automation technology (17%). However, this device ranks below other devices for accessing games such as desktop PCs, which are in 5 out of 10 households, tablets, in seven out of ten (69%), or mobile phones (100% of households).

Nationally, and according to data from the Video Game Industry Yearbook, 31% of all video game players choose consoles for online gaming, compared to other devices such as smartphones (32%), PCs (24%), or tablets (13%).

 

Daily video game use

The report, the second prepared by the Asteo Observatory, also shows that video games are among the top 15 activities carried out by internet users in rural areas. Browsing, sending or receiving emails, getting information, or banking transactions are in the top positions, while online gaming ranks eleventh.

More than half of the surveyed users who play online, 54%, acknowledge playing these video games during the week, while 40% state they only use consoles on holidays.

 
Have consoles in their home vs. Use the device

Related content

Patricia Moreno Pacheco

Deployment Manager Director

Trained as an architect at the University of Seville and with international experience after her studies at the Leibniz Universität Hannover, she has a multidisciplinary technical profile. He stands out for his analytical capacity and leadership in telecommunications infrastructures, providing a highly consolidated strategic vision.

Her career began in civil architecture, working as a Municipal Architect and energy certifier. In 2017 she oriented her career towards the telco sector by joining Nokia as FTTx Network Design Engineer. For five years, he participated in large multinational deployments for operators in the USA, Italy, Chile, the Philippines and Germany. Later, at Inelcom, he took over team management and implementation support for the German UGG network, mastering the construction and last mile phases. All this international supervisory experience brought her to Asteo Red Neutra in 2023, where she manages field operations as Deployment Manager.

Away from blueprints and fiber optics, he is an active person who likes to enjoy his free time. He is passionate about climbing, paddle tennis and traveling, always looking for new environments to disconnect.

Laura Díaz

Marketing & Communications Director

With 20 years of experience, Laura has developed the communication strategy for national and international companies. Since the official launch of ASTEO Red Neutra, she has led its communication and content strategy as an external consultant, until her incorporation to the team.

She started her career as a journalist in the IT sector. She specialised in Communication, advising companies in various sectors (banking, asset management, private equity, insurance and insurtech or telecommunications). She led Evercom's Financial Communication department, in charge of the area's growth strategy and the management of the team and clients.

She graduated in journalism from the Universidad Católica Andrés Bello, in Venezuela, took the ABC-UCM master's degree in journalism, and complemented her education with studies in International Business at Dublin Business School, and sustainability at the University of Cambridge.

Married to Santi, she is the mother of two children and, whenever she has some free time, she loves going swimming and to the cinema or enjoying long dinners with friends.