Wendy Lazarus on Social Gaming and Child Poverty

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Huffington Post

As gaming becomes more social, it is expanding into parts of society once seen as untouched by video games. The largest of these groups is women, who make up 55 percent of social gamers on average. Women are also more likely than men to make charitable contributions, care about youth-related causes, and purchase virtual goods in social games. 

The kinds of in-game donations and virtual goods that helped fund disaster relief in Haiti and Japan are a natural next step for helping our own children. The potential is enormous for both gaming companies and children. In 2011, the virtual goods industry saw $2.3 billion in US sales. In a market that big, there is certainly room for many causes. The Children's Partnership is working to make sure that child poverty is one of them.

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