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Linux Users Donate Twice As Much As Windows Users, On Average

Posted by Soulskill on from the interesting-data-points dept.

sammyF70 writes "The Wolfire/Humble Indie Bundle real time statistics have been updated to show the average amount donated per platform. It looks like Linux users donate twice as much, on average, as Windows users. You can see some graphs on the Wolfire blog."

7 of 145 comments (clear)

  1. Not surprising... by maugle · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Linux has fewer games than Windows, so games would be more highly valued by Linux users than Windows users.

    1. Re:Not surprising... by pushing-robot · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Still, very nearly 50% of the money contributed is coming from OS X and Linux. Whether it's because those users are more affluent, more inclined to buy games, or just happy to support any development on their platform, the numbers show there's a substantial market to be tapped. Studies like this are exactly the thing marketing departments want to see.

      And it couldn't have come at a better time: Steam's imminent release on OS X and Linux is about to make cross-platform development substantially easier. While it's hardly the Year of Gaming Linux, it would be nice to remember 2010 as the year we started chipping away at Microsoft's PC gaming monopoly.

      --
      How can I believe you when you tell me what I don't want to hear?
    2. Re:Not surprising... by dangitman · · Score: 3, Interesting

      And what's the Windows marketshare on the desktop? Probably at least 100 times that of Linux. So, if charity were equal, you'd expect Windows users to cover at least 85% of donations.

      That's not even counting people who buy while at work, on their office-supplied Windows machine, while intending to use the games on Mac or Linux. Or those who primarily use Linux or Mac, but dual-boot Windows to play games.

      --
      ... and then they built the supercollider.
  2. Donate to who, and for what? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    Why would your typical windows user have heard of these people? Why would they donate?

    In short, why do I care?

  3. As this was mentioned the other day, by 4lex · · Score: 2, Interesting

    I wondered, will people care enough to start making fake donations, i.e. pay 1c, then download the windows version, to make the other camp look bad?

    You've got to take these things with a grain of salt anyway. I know I only paid $10 for the bundle because I wasn't sure it was going to work at all on my oldish hardware. I'm likely to "buy" it again for a higher price as a thumbs-up once I give all games a good try and am convinced I like them.

    --
    My journal. Mainly about freedom.
  4. Re:And again, the world is a little nicer. by sznupi · · Score: 3, Interesting

    I like this new world, new kind of culture (yes, the elders would yell "the world is falling down!" anyway), ideas - for which people will pay, if they are worth anything. It's perhaps related to how, apparently, heavy p2p users actually buy a lot of music...only it's not so often from the major labels anymore (but often with "useless" nice physical addons, quite common in indie world).

    Two different spheres, but in a way with converging ideas. Hey, RIAA would like us to believe that p2p users are thieves. And why would those hippie Linux users, wanting everything for free and loathing closed source software, pay more in this case?... (and when not being watched)

    --
    One that hath name thou can not otter
  5. Re:Of course by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    I've been using Windows since 3.11, and I've never used the Geek Squad or a similar service.

    If you're competent enough to properly maintain a Linux box, you're competent enough to keep a Windows machine clean.