With mobile devices becoming a primary platform for household play, parents are looking for more co-play opportunities with their kids, according to a recent report from New York-based research and development firm PlayScience.

The report, Mobile Playgrounds: Kids, Family, & Mobile Play, found that 75% of US children ages two to 13 now have access to smartphones, half of kids have access to an iPod Touch, more 25% are toting tablets and 33% of 10-to 13-year-olds have their own phones.  Currently, parent-child co-play on these mobile devices is generally occurring through single-player games that they pass back and forth.  Although they enjoy this type of competitive play, parents are reporting that they are interested in having more opportunities to play cooperatively with their kids in the future.

For the industry, this means redefining and expanding on current co-play opportunities and developing ways that families can play together even if they are not in the same place.

Also worth noting is the ongoing trend of dads playing a key role in mobile app purchases. The report has found that dads pay an average of US$0.45 more than moms for phone apps and US$0.75 more on tablet apps.