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Wireless Gaming to Skyrocket
URL(s): Datamonitor
NEW YORK, Sept. 10 -- A new report shortly to be published by
independent market analysts, Datamonitor, reveals that global wireless gaming,
already worth millions of dollars, is set for further boom in both revenues
and numbers playing.
Revenues gained from wireless games will be eighteen times greater than they are today.
According to predictions from the new report, Global Wireless Gaming,
combined revenues from the US, Europe and Asia Pacific markets will grow, from
an estimated $950m in 2001 to $17.5b in 2006. Asia Pacific dominates,
accounting for 87% of revenues, however by 2006, the US and Europe will have
acquired a sizable slice of this share -- 40% -- compared to just 13% today.
Currently estimated at $105m, Europe's wireless gaming market will grow to
$4.2b in 2006. By comparison, that in the US will grow from just $20m today to
$3b in 2006 as operators increase their focus on gaming for revenue
generation.
Globally, 120 million people are playing some kind of wireless game and
numbers are set to triple
With 60m wireless gamers, half of the total worldwide, Asia Pacific is the
wireless gaming capital of the globe.
In the US, 22m currently play games on their mobile phones or PDAs
compared to 41m in Europe. In the US, Datamonitor estimates that the number
of wireless gamers will grow to 124m in 2006 as new devices and services bring
accessible gaming entertainment to all. By 2006, Europe will have over 150m
wireless gamers with Germany, followed by the UK then Italy, dominating in
terms of numbers.
"Operators in the US and Europe are finally taking wireless gaming
seriously. It has taken the dot.com correction and the threat of losing
popular content to collapsing startups for them to open their wallets and
their systems. But now that they have, the industry is starting to thrive,"
said Peter Tyson, Datamonitor games analyst.
Favorite times of play are evenings and weekends
It is commonly believed that wireless gamers play games on the trains or
buses to pass time. Indeed they do. However, not only does the wireless gamer
want a quick fix of entertainment when waiting for friends, commuting or bored
with television. According to Datamonitor research across the US, Asia
Pacific, and Europe, shows that the most popular time for people to play
wireless games is on the weekends and in the evenings.
"Our research shows that wireless users are not playing games simply to
pass time, they choose to play a game over and above other activities.
Wireless games are not simple time wasters but are actively engaging users
with fun content," said Tyson.
"Furthermore, these gamers frequently own a PC with Internet access also.
More than half of mobile gamers have Internet access and more than 80% of WAP
phone owners use the Internet. Their game playing represents a choice of using
their handsets for entertainment over devices arguably better suited for
gameplay. Mobile interactive content is here to stay," said Tyson.
Downloadable games will be the dominant wireless game experience
The success of downloadable ringtones and graphics will be repeated with
wireless games. While the penetration of technologies, such as Java 2 ME, Brew
and ExEn, will take time, by 2003 downloading content for a small charge will
prove to be a lucrative revenue stream.
The ease of use of downloading games will encourage many users to take up
the wireless game experience. At the same time, traditional developers will
come to exploit this market, releasing downloads for wireless game versions of
popular console and PC titles. The ability to interconnect the traditional
and wireless devices as well as incorporate the wireless device's portability
into gameplay will fuel wireless game growth.
Datamonitor plc is a premium business information company specializing in
industry analysis. We help our clients, 5000 of the world's leading companies,
to address complex strategic issues. Through our proprietary databases and
wealth of expertise, we provide clients with unbiased expert analysis and
in-depth forecasts for six industry sectors: Automotive, Consumer Markets,
Energy, Financial Services, Healthcare, Technology. Datamonitor maintains its
headquarters in London and has regional offices in New York, Frankfurt, and
Hong Kong.
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