China sees strong growth in mobile games market
Mobile games are popular all over the world, but in China, the game market has boomed in the first quarter. Gaming in China has been a somewhat tricky situation for the past several years. The Central Government imposed a ban on gaming consoles in 2000 that has all but stymied the country’s market for console games. Despite the ban, many Chinese consumers consider themselves to be avid gamers and, in the past, have turned to PC gaming over other forms. With the advent of mobile technology, however, these consumers have been showing a great deal of interest in mobile games.
Games market grows as mobile technology thrives
China’s mobile games market has been experiencing strong growth over the past several months. Consumers have proven themselves to be heavily reliant on their mobile devices, which also means that they turn to these devices for entertainment when necessary. Mobile games have become an ideal form of entertainment for commuters and for students spending time between classes. These people are not only willing to spend their time on mobile games, of course, as they are also eager to spend money on these games as well.
Market exceeds $350 million in first quarter
The country’s market for mobile games has breached the $350 million mark for the first quarter of this year, a 30% increase over what it had been during the same quarter of 2012. The boom is being attributed to the growing popularity of so called mobile network games — games that require an Internet connection to play. These mobile games typically offer strong social elements that allow consumers to connect with one another and play together.
Console ban may be good for the mobile games sector
China’s ban on consoles may be a powerful boon for mobile games. The lack of competition in this given market has allowed mobile games to flourish and reach a large portion of the population. Most of the mobile games enjoyed by consumers are free to obtain, but also offer content for a modest fee. Consumers have proven that they are happy to pay for additional content, as long as the game can hold their attention.
Chinese mobile commerce gaining more attention from consumers
China has become a bustling hub of mobile commerce activity in recent years. This is largely due to the massive number of young consumers that have access to mobile technology. These consumers have shown that they are beginning to favor new forms of commerce over traditional forms of commerce and have taken to the mobile space in order to find a more convenient way to purchase products and shop online. In China, two of the country’s largest technology companies are beginning to focus a great deal of their attention on the field of mobile commerce in order to engage a new generation of consumers.
Companies work to promote new forms of commerce
The Alibaba Group and Tencent are two of China’s most influential technology companies. Both companies have strong ties to the retail and gaming spaces, where they work to engage consumers on a regular basis. Because of the companies’ focus on technology, they have taken notice of the meteoric rise of mobile commerce among consumers, as well as the increasingly popularity of location-based services. Location-based technologies have been quite useful in exposing consumers to mobile commerce as these technologies are often used in advertisements that direct consumers to e-commerce sites.
Alibaba favors location-based services and Tencent focuses on social applications
Alibaba is keen to throw more support behind location-based services in order to make mobile commerce more prolific among consumers. The company has invested more than $800 million in these technologies coming from companies like Weibo and AutoNavi. Tencent has shown more subdued interest in location-based services, but does believe that popular social tools, such as the famous WeChat messaging application, could be a powerful way to encourage consumers to participate in mobile commerce providing them details about shops that allow for mobile purchases.
China is establishing itself as a leading market in mobile commerce
China is often considered one of the most active markets when it comes to mobile commerce. Both Alibaba and Tencent have managed to capture the attention of mobile consumers that are eager to take advantage of the capabilities of technology and these consumers have been growing more comfortable with the idea of mobile commerce.
