Android leads the pack with mobile app game impressions, showing how handsets are becoming the go-to platform to play games, according to a new report from Millennial Media.

In Millennial?s 2013 ?Mobile Mix? report, the company looks at how consumers are interacting with mobile devices for gaming. Additionally, the report breaks down mobile game categories by popularity.

"A big takeaway for marketers is that the group of consumers that engages with mobile gaming content is tremendously diverse, and if they approach their campaigns strategically, brands in almost all verticals can reach their key audiences through gaming apps," said Marcus Startzel, general manager of North America at Millennial Media, Baltimore.
 
"We listed the top audiences who are actually clicking on ads inside mobile games, and they ranged from business travelers to parents to insurance shoppers," he said.

"Brands are using our Mobile Audience Solutions to provide relevant content to the consumer audiences that matter to them, and increasingly, they are reaching these consumers through mobile gaming apps."

Game on
Games continue to be a top app category for marketers.

In fact, games were the No. 1 app category on Millennial?s platform in the third quarter of 2012. The category has held the position for each quarter of 2012.

Compared to Android?s 64 percent grip, iOS devices claim 30 percent of the impressions by operating system. Five percent of impressions came from BlackBerry devices and one percent came from Windows devices.

When it comes to mobile game app categories, games, music and entertainment and communication apps top the list.

Thirty percent of mobile game app impressions came from arcade games in the third quarter of 2012. Twenty-six percent of impressions came from word games and 19 percent came from puzzles. The remaining portion of impressions came from board, card and other mobile game apps.

Smartphones dominate the mobile gaming landscape, according to the report. Seventy-four percent of impressions of mobile game impressions came from smartphones in the third quarter of 2012. Non-phone connected devices claim 23 percent of mobile game impressions and feature phones raked in 3 percent of impressions.

Mobile demographic
The Millennial report also looks at who the key audiences are for mobile games.

For example, entertainment fans, insurance shoppers and parents were all top demographics for mobile game app usage.

Mobile games also offer marketers big opportunities for revenue and monetization. For instance, a finding from eMarketer in Oct. 2012 found that ad-supported revenue in mobile game apps grew 119 percent year-over-year in 2012.

For Millennial in particular, the company is seeing a wide group of brand advertisers taking to mobile games for advertising purposes.

The top brand advertiser category was travel, which might point to consumers using mobile games to fill in the time while traveling.

Other top advertising verticals include entertainment, education, retail and restaurant and finance.

Rounding out the top ten advertising categories were telecommunications, consumer-packaged-goods, portals and directories, automotive and dating.

"The growth in mobile games is mirroring the overall growth we?re seeing in the mobile space," Mr. Startzel said.

"As consumers have shifted away from feature phones to smartphones and tablets, mobile gaming content has also made the shift to smartphones and tablets," he said.
 
"Mobile devices have proven to be a very natural platform to engage with gaming content, and we certainly expect that to continue in the future."

Final Take
Lauren Johnson is associate reporter on Mobile Marketer, New York