Few console gamers using multimedia capabilities, says study

According to the Diffusion Group, while 80 per cent of US households own game consoles capable of DVD playback, only 30 per cent were aware of that fact and only 13 per cent of gamers are using them for that purpose.

The Dallas-based research firm also found that, of the households who view movies on their game consoles, 74 per cent are watching physical DVDs and only 26 per cent are going online to purchase or rent a digital movie download.

"Today's next-generation games consoles such as the Xbox 360 or Sony PS3 are true digital multimedia powerhouses," said Dale Gilliam III, author of the Diffusion Group report.

"Yet very few of these devices are connected to the Internet and, even though these same platforms may feature a high-definition DVD playback system, very few consumers are using them for non-gaming media applications."

The report also found that approximately half of US households with broadband own at least one game console, with 15 per cent owning two or more game consoles. Those consoles are most likely to be located in the living room or family room (52 per cent) than in a second bedroom (24 per cent) or in a dedicated games room (21 percent).

The Diffusion Group's report, On The Use of Game Consoles for Movie Viewing, is based upon a survey of 2,000 US broadband heads-of-households.