Xbox 360 'leads' US online gaming
Nielsen report also reveals that the PS3 appears to be used more for all-round entertainment
New research by Nielsen claims that Xbox 360 users spend more time playing online games in the US than on either of the key rivals, the PlayStation 3 or the Nintendo Wii.
According to the research firm - as reported by Gamasutra - 28 per cent of any time spent using the console fell into that category, compared to 19 per cent for the PS3 and just 12 per cent for the Wii.
Conversely it was the Wii that came top in overall gaming time, made up of huge levels of offline play as compared to the other two platforms.
Time spent on the Nintendo machine offline was at 57 per cent, compared to 34 per cent for the 360 and 30 per cent for the PS3, giving overall totals of 69 per cent, 62 per cent and 49 per cent respectively.
That makes the PS3 the console most used for other forms of entertainment, with DVD/Blu-ray watching accounting for more than a quarter of all time spent, compared to just 11 per cent for the Xbox 360.
The figures come from a general population sample from the US for users aged over 13 years oldl although the sample size wasn't disclosed. The numbers reflect proportions of activity, taking into account the fact that more hours are spent with any activity on some machines, compared to others.