On the eve of the gaming confab E3, M:Metrics reports that although there is an equal gender split in mobile game play, with 32 percent of females and 34 percent of males reporting they play mobile games, males are twice as likely to download a mobile game.

"Mobile game publishers and carriers should be encouraged by these findings, as they reveal that women's appetites for mobile games have not been sated by the downloadable options available on carrier decks," said Mark Donovan, vice president, product and senior analyst, M:Metrics, who will address E3 attendees at iHollywood's Next-Gen and Mobile Games Forum tomorrow. "There is a significant opportunity for the industry to provide a compelling gaming experience for women, as currently, only half of the mobile games audience is being served."

Donovan says that although 67 percent of mobile game downloaders are men, women represent 46 percent of subscribers who download mobile content across all categories, and are equally likely to pay for gender-neutral content, such as ringtones. M:Metrics found that nearly half - 48.9 percent - of survey respondents who downloaded ringtones were women.

"One needs to look to the game catalogs being offered in the marketplace to find the source of the discrepancy between play and pay," adds David Hu, analyst, M:Metrics.

"Of all the games being offered by carriers, 48 percent are sports and action/adventure titles, which our data shows are least appealing to women. Only 10 percent of games are arcade puzzle games like Tetris, and card games, which are universally popular, and the most common genres downloaded by women."

Read