According to a recent study from Park Associates called "Casual Gaming Market Update" : "34% of US internet users play games online on a weekly basis, compared to 29% who visit online video sites and 19% interested in social networking "

"Despite the growing popularity of YouTube, MySpace, and Facebook, gaming remains the king of online entertainment, driven largely by casual gaming activities," commented James Kuai, analyst at Park Associates.

"Gaming also has business advantages. Unlike sites for social networking and video streaming, which rely solely on advertising revenue, casual gaming has more mature and heterogeneous revenue models, including web-based and in-game advertising, try-before-you-buy, subscriptions, and micro-transactions," detailed Kuai. Year-on-year growth rates show that gaming has seen a 79% rise in frequent online players, compared to 46% using social networking sites. But the biggest growth rate is for users of video sharing sites such as YouTube, which leapt by 123%, according to Park Associates. "The casual gaming industry cannot rest on its laurels," said Kuai. "In order to counter the growing competition from other online activities, the industry needs to continue to grow its fan base and find ways to better monetize its existing audience."

I totally agree with Mister Kuai. But I was wondering if the casual gaming industry is ready for that change ?

In comparaison with universe and clouds like Facebook, what about the chance of the actual casual gaming to challenge these ?

For example, the "ajax" abilities of these social network sites are not present in most the actual casual gaming portal. So if you have a clue to see forward and imagine what is the exact solution, tell me !