A recent report issued by industry analysts Newzoo indicates that the U.S. gaming consumers spend approximately $25.3 billion per year.
Culled from data pulled from the 2009 Today’s Gamers Survey, operated in conjunction with global search firm TNS, the Newzoo Games Market Report brings to light not only some staggering monetary figures, but also reveals where, exactly, this money is being spent. A total of 13,000 gamers were surveyed, and Newzoo speculates that there are approximately 183.5 million gamers in the U.S.
Almost half of all sales made in the video game industry in the United States (46 percent) can be attributed to the trading (buying/selling) of used titles, as well as online forms of payment(s) – subscriptions, virtual currencies, microtransactions, and digital distribution or downloadable content.
What this means is that the remaining 54 percent of sales are still coming from “traditional” (read:boxed) forms of games revenue generation. When viewed from Europe, these numbers are even higher with Belgium having a 59 percent “traditional” revenue making model, with up to 78 percent in France.
U.S. gamers clearly prefer consoles, as the largest percentage of the spending is on console based games – $15 billion. This includes both home and handheld gaming software. PC spending scores a paltry 2nd, with only $4.5 billion headed in it’s direction. Mobile device (i.e. smartphones) take home around $1.1 billion, MMOs, $2.12 billion, and Game Portals $2.78 billion.
Below are highlights from the Newzoo Games Market Report available for only 299 EU
Little World Gifts will soon be adding three WWF branded items to it’s inventory. A virtual replica of the WWF’s ‘iconic’ panda logo will take a seat as a virtual collectable box, as well as a ‘wooden tiger toy’ and an animated Adelie penguin. These virtual gifts are slated to run between $3.99 and $4.99, and may be purchased using Apple’s microtransaction mechanism. Little World Gifts reports that 36 percent of the revenue generated will go directly to the WWF.
This kind of virtual gifting very well may have tremendous potential. Instead of picking up a handful of postcards with images shot years ago, a visitor to Vienna, for example, might be able to pick up a virtual Riesenrad, or a Tour Eiffel in Paris. They could then keep this virtual souvenir, or send it as a gift (a “Wish You Were Here”, if you will) to a friend or family member back stateside.
“OpenFeint X is by far our most ambitious and transformative effort,” said Jason Citron, Founder and CEO of Aurora Feint Inc. “We know that there is tremendous interest in creating the next Zynga, CrowdStar, and PlayFish of the iPhone. We also know that developers who aspire to these ambitions want the platform on which they can build these kinds of lucrative businesses. OpenFeint X is exactly that platform.”
Based in San Francisco, Serious Business was one of the first social games companies on the Facebook scene, and is most noted for their “Friends for Sale” title. The acquisition hails a major experience and knowhow intake for Zynga, as Serious Business has 32 people on staff, 20 of which are new hires added in Q4 of 2009. As is normal with an acquisition like this, the terms of the deal were undisclosed.
One talk in particular revealed some great numbers for the virtual goods sector. In his opening speech on Thursday, Consumer Electronics Association President and CEO Gary Shapiro acknowledged that 2009 was, “a year none of us would wish to repeat,” noting that the industry overall dropped 7 percent over the course of the year.
