[Survey of 613 Gamers' Internet Usage] Fiber Optic Usage at 40.3%, 70.3% 'Completely Unaware' of Game-Specific Fiber Optic Lines

ALL CONNECT Inc. (President: Kota Iwai, Headquarters: Fukui City, Fukui Prefecture), a company engaged in telecommunications infrastructure and regional development, operates the telecom media 'All Connect Magazine.' The magazine conducted a survey on 'Actual Internet Line Usage of Gamers' targeting 613 men and women who play online games.

The survey results showed that while 'fiber optic lines' are the most used connection type at 40.3%, approximately 60% of gamers use non-fiber connections such as home routers, mobile Wi-Fi, or tethering.

Regarding 'game-specific fiber optic lines,' 70.3% of respondents answered they are 'completely unaware.' The most important factor when choosing a fiber optic line was 'low monthly fee' at 29.2%, while only 5.2% prioritized 'Ping value (low latency),' which is directly related to gaming performance.

[Survey Result Summary]
- 'A few times a month' is the most common play frequency at 54.2%. Top genres are Card/Board, Sports/Racing, and Casual games.
- Fiber optic usage at 40.3%. 70.3% are 'completely unaware' of game-specific fiber optic lines.
- Approximately 60% experience connection issues. 57.3% 'completely do not understand' Ping value.
- Maximum monthly payment limit is 'under 3,999 yen' for 49.9%. 51.1% would pay '0 yen' extra for quality improvement.

[Survey Overview]
Target: Men and women who play online games
Valid Responses: 613
Survey Period: May 2026
Method: Internet survey (CrowdWorks)
Conducted by: ALL CONNECT Inc. (All Connect Magazine)

Regarding play frequency, 'a few times a month' was the most common at 54.2%, followed by 'every day' at 24.6%, '2-3 times a week' at 9.0%, '4-6 times a week' at 7.5%, and 'about once a week' at 4.7%.

The most popular game genres (up to 3 choices) were 'Card/Board Games' at 17.0%, 'Sports/Racing' at 16.4%, 'Casual/Smartphone' at 16.1%, 'Battle Royale' at 12.9%, 'Fighting' at 11.3%, and 'MMORPG' at 11.2%. Genres requiring high-quality connections like 'FPS/TPS' accounted for 8.7% and 'MOBA' for 6.4%.

The type of internet connection currently used was 'Fiber Optic' at 40.3%, followed by 'Home Router' at 15.2%, 'Apartment Building Line' at 11.9%, 'Mobile Wi-Fi' at 11.4%, 'Smartphone Tethering Only' at 10.9%, and 'Cable TV' at 10.3%. It is noteworthy that about 60% of gamers play on non-fiber optic connections.

Among the 247 fiber optic users, the most contracted services were 'Docomo Hikari' at 19.4%, 'SoftBank Hikari' at 19.0%, 'FLETS Hikari' at 17.8%, 'au Hikari' at 13.8%, and 'NURO Hikari' at 9.3%. Game-specific services like 'GameWith Hikari' (1.6%) and 'hi-ho Hikari with games' (0.8%) had very few subscribers even among gamers.

Regarding connection troubles during gameplay (multiple answers allowed), 'No particular trouble' was the most common at 39.4%. Conversely, this means about 60% of gamers have experienced some form of connection issue. Specific troubles included 'Slow updates/downloads' (11.4%), 'Sudden disconnections' (10.9%), 'Lag' (10.5%), and 'Slow matchmaking' (8.2%).

The impact of these troubles on gameplay was 'No particular impact' for 48.7%. However, a significant number of cases affected the quality of the gaming experience or social relationships, including 'Quit mid-game' (10.7%), 'Couldn't enjoy the game anymore' (8.5%), 'Lost a ranked match' (6.4%), and 'Inconvenienced teammates or opponents' (6.4%).

Regarding the understanding of 'Ping value (response speed),' a key quality indicator for gaming connections, 57.3% said they 'completely do not understand' it, 21.4% said they 'have a vague idea but don't know the numbers,' and 12.6% said they 'have heard the term but don't understand the meaning.' Only 8.8% accurately understood the specific numerical values.

The most important factor when choosing a fiber optic line was 'Low monthly fee' at 29.2%, followed by 'Stability (resistance to disconnection)' at 20.6%.