Alright I have gotten in hot water in the past when reporting on survey's as users have assumed I am stating them as fact. So I will clarify right now that this is a survey and not necessarily a complete fact. Survey's are a good indication of fact but as we see in elections and sales of software and hardware they don't always hold the same credibility.

However that doesn't mean survey's aren't important, companies do pay very close attention to them and rightly so. Anyways Gamasutra is reporting on a new GFK report based on a survey that was conducted. The survey took in 3,000 eReader and Tablet owners to see just how much effect Tablets have had on their console gaming experience. The "GfK Chart Track found that, of the 3,000 tablet and eReader owners it interviewed who play video games, 59 percent said they had played more on consoles and handhelds before they had a tablet." - Gamasutra. The survey and research was ordered due to the current belief by many game companies that tablets and smart phones aren't just expanding the market but stealing away potential customers and current consumers.

"The fact that a majority of game-playing tablet owners report using a video game console or a handheld video game less often as a result of owning a tablet does not necessarily mean they are playing video games less often," - Gfk research VP Risa Becker. This is good news for all the game companies supporting tablet/smart phone devices, however if this survey and research actually holds water it does indicate that a slim majority of Tablet consumers are actually investing less time and money on their game consoles. This research does give credence to Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft fears that tablets and smart phones may be a threat to their lively hoods.

Risa Becker concluded a summary of the research's findings putting it bluntly " it does suggest that tablet owners are moving their gaming from other devices to the tablet,"

Other recent research shows that game developers are in agreement that console and PC software sales will begin to decline sharply due to the increased competition from Smart Phones and Tablets. The survey was conducted by the most reliable source in Britain, the British Government themselves is interested in where the games industry is headed. The government's Sector Skills Council was tasked with surveying 80 of Britain big game studios to get a good picture of where the industry is headed.

"A full 42 percent of studios surveyed predicted demand for PC games would decrease in the next 12 months, compared to only 20 percent that said it would increase. Regarding the console market, 24 percent of surveyed studios said demand would decrease, while 32 percent said it would increase." The findings of this survey do get you to ask questions, why the decline in the PC game market but the optimistic out look for consoles? Could that be due to Vita, 3DS and WiiU all releasing by the end of 2012? The report had a much better outlook for tablet, social and smart phone software sales."Both results stand in sharp contrast to the expectations for online, mobile and casual games which nearly 90 percent of surveyed studios said would be in higher demand in the coming 12 months."

The British Government was relieved when asking developers if they would be laying off staff or hiring additional staff. 68% percent of the 80 studios said they expected to hire new staff within the next 12 months. None appeared to expect to lay off staff!

Sources for both survey's (Tablet consumers / Game studios)

Until the number of tablet users are at a level of parity (not necessarily equal but close to it) with video game console users, then surveys such as this are useless.

  Sure tablet users may spend less time on a video game console, but that finding is ignoring some central points. First, What is the general age demographic of the majority of tablet users? I would guess it is older than the video game console demographic. If it is older, then it is no wonder they don't spend as much time on video game consoles as they do worrying about the mortgage and earning enough to get the kids what they want for Christmas.

Second, what is the educational attainment and income level of the majority of tablet users? I would guess it is a Bachelor's degree or higher and well over the poverty line. With this set, it is natural for them to be spending more time on a tablet because it streamlines both work and entertainment when they don't have time to put the computer to sleep and play a few round of multiplayer on a video game console.

Finally, when do we expect tablet usage to replace smart phone usage? Smart phones to me are just tablets with a smaller screen and lower entry price point. They can basically do everything a tablet can do and place phone calls. I may be wrong on smart phones being equal in utility to a tablet. It may be hard to type office memos and fine tune strategic planning on a smart phone.

hence, the threat of the smartmachines on dedicated console games and handhelds...nothing new as smartmachines will be competing with hardware from Sony, Nintendo and Microsoft!