In a new report published by UKIE (trade association for the UK's games and interactive entertainment industry), it has been revealed that 60% of children in the UK last year were gamers.
The report notes that of the 60%, up to 75% of children between the age of 12-17 played online games, with that number being as low as 18% for 2-4 year olds.
As for how children play video games, the report notes that 59% of children use games consoles, with 54% of children also playing some form of online game on a mobile device. Only a third of children were PC gamers.
As for how parents view video games, the report explains that 38% of parents believed that online gaming had more benefits than risks, 22% didn't, and 40% were impartial. Yet, with this being the case, 59% of parents were concerned about their children speaking to strangers on the internet. To handle the growing rate of young gamers, the report states that 87% of parents have rules in place to keep tabs on children playing games.
The report also dishes out a few other details, including that 67% of children speak online with friends they know, and that 51% of parents are concerned about children being coaxed into making in-game purchases. Check out the report in full here.