1 in 10 Brits Buying Grandparents Games Consoles

Jan. 13, 2011 - PRLog -- New research has revealed that 1 in 10 Brits plan on investing in a games console for their grandparents this year, with the majority explaining that they were doing so to encourage their grandparents to increase exercise levels or stimulate brain activity.
The study, conducted by the UK’s leading discount site http://www.MyVoucherCodes.co.uk, polled 1,345 members of the British public, aged 30 and under. The site wanted to investigate the attitudes of Brits towards older gamers, or ‘Grandgamers’ as they are sometimes called.
One in ten of the respondents polled, 11%, said that they were planning on buying their grandparents a games console this year; with a third of these, 32%, admitting that they planned to “get a bargain” by purchasing one in the January Sales. When asked what console they intended to purchase for their grandparents, the majority, 46%, explained that they intended to buy a Nintendo Wii; whilst 21% intended to purchase an Xbox Kinect bundle. The Nintendo DS console came in third place with 16% of the vote.
The respondents who intended to buy their grandparent a games console this year were further asked to explain why they were doing so. Just over a third, 35%, explained they were doing so to ‘encourage their grandparent to exercise more;’ whilst one in five, 22%, were doing so ‘to help stimulate’ their grandparent’s brain activity. The majority, 37%, were doing so simply because their grandparent wanted a games console.
Out of the total respondents to the study, 51% stated that their grandparents have played video games in the past. When asked “What games do your older relatives prefer to play?” the majority, 56%, admitted that they preferred active games like the Wii Fit series; whilst a quarter, 24%, admitted that they preferred theory games, with the most popular title being Professor Layton.
MyVoucherCodes.co.uk also asked respondents, “What are your thoughts towards Grandgamers?” to which a fifth, 22%, admitted that they found the concept of older people playing games consoles “funny”; whilst 41% said that they thought it was “brilliant”.
Over a fifth of the total respondents to the survey, 21%, also admitted that they had been beaten by an elderly member of their family whilst gaming in the past. A quarter of these, 26%, admitted that they had “let” their family member win, whilst a third, 34%, confessed that they thought their relative had “cheated”.
Mark Pearson, chairman of http://www.MyVoucherCodes.co.uk, commented on the findings:
“Grandgaming was huge last year and we expect it to continue through this year too; as do the public, it seems. Many Brits are now turning to consoles for their elderly relatives not only as a means of entertainment, but as a form of exercise; as many of the more active consoles can be a great way to increase levels of gentle physical activity.”
He continued:
“The Nintendo Wii, and now the Xbox Kinect, have made it easier than ever for Grandgamers to have some fun. Games like Wii Fit have proved the most popular due to their content focus on physical activity, as well as Nintendo DS games which help to keep the mind active.
“Of course gaming can be expensive, so it is no surprise that many people will be purchasing games in the January sales. There are however, many ways you can save money throughout the year, and searching for discounts on electronics is always a perfect place to start.”
LINK http://www.MyVoucherCodes.co.uk
ENDS
For more information, contact Gabrielle Lofthouse at 10 Yetis PR Agency on 01452 348211 or e-mail gabrielle@10yetis.co.uk.
Editor’s Notes

Mark Pearson, chairman of MyVoucherCodes is a regular media contributor regarding online shopping and the credit crunch. At 30, his personal worth is more than £60 million. Mark was previously a trainee chef working for Gordon Ramsay at Claridges, London.
Mark appeared as a ‘Secret Millionaire’ in the series on Channel 4, in which he donated £115,000 of his own money to worthy causes.
MyVoucherCodes has had sales exceeding £481m in the last year
Consumer savings on online shopping via MyVoucherCodes.co.uk up from £28m in 2008 to £52m in 2009.
MyVoucherCodes is the UK’s most popular discount site.