Tag: mobile gaming market

Mobile games eclipse portable consoles in revenue

| February 25, 2013

Mobile Games Eclipse Portable ConsolesMobile games generate more revenue than portable consoles

Mobile devices like smartphones and tablets have come to play a major role in the game industry. The advent of smartphones birthed the popularity of applications, relatively light pieces of software that provide services and entertainment for people all over the world. As smartphones became more advanced, so too did their applications. Mobile games have become the most popular of these applications, and they have benefitted tremendously from the advances made in mobile technology. Now, these mobile games are generating revenue that is dwarfing that produced through the game industry’s much touted portable consoles.

Consoles not living up to expectations

Nintendo and Sony are the biggest names in the portable console market. Both companies recently released portable consoles that were highly anticipated among consumers. Despite this anticipation, however, these consoles did not sell as well as the companies had hopes. Both the Nintendo 3DS and Sony Playstation Vita have seen lackluster sales globally and because these consoles are not universally favored by consumers, the games they support have generated less revenue than Sony and Nintendo would have liked.

Data highlights popularity of mobile games

Research firms IDC and App Annie have release data concerning the disparity in the revenues generated through mobile games and portable consoles. The data shows that portable consoles see high sales during holiday seasons, but mobile games account for year-round spending. Approximately 60% of all app spending in Apple’s App Store, and 80% in Google Play, was directed to mobile games. Most of these games include in-game transactions, which entice gamers to purchase power-ups or virtual currencies in order to gain an edge.

Game industry continues to adjust to the clout of mobile devices

The mobile games market has become extremely influential in the overall game industry. Large developers that had, in the past, been focused exclusively on consoles are beginning to set their sights on mobile devices in order to tap into a new generation of consumers. Publishers like Electronic Arts and Activision are also taking a strong position on mobile gaming, expecting to see major success in this market that they have not seen in portable consoles.

Mobile gaming investments rekindled

| January 31, 2013

investors mobile gamingInvestors taking a bold move on mobile gaming

For the past several months, investors around the world have been leery of mobile gaming and mobile ventures of all kinds. Many mobile-centric companies have been unable to deliver on their ambitious promises, which has translated into significant losses for several investors. These failures have done little to bolster the confidence investors have in the mobile space, but some of these investors are beginning to show a change of heart. Several parties have begun focusing on the battered mobile gaming and social gaming companies that saw turbulence throughout 2012.

Zynga continues to produce despite fall from grace

Zynga, the former champion of social mobile gaming, fell from grace in 2012.The company’s focus on creating addicting social games that borrowed heavily — at times too heavily — from other popular titles in the game industry eventually lost the favor of consumers. As people began to criticize Zynga, Facebook began to pull back its support of the developer. An exodus of investors had added insult to injury to the former gaming titan, but the developer continued its work.

Investors throw lifeline to Zynga and Glu Mobile

Zynga’s tenacity seems to be attracting the attention of new investors. Shares in the company have risen by 12.5% on Monday, the heaviest day of trading the developer has seen since November. This may be due to the developer’s rekindled focus on producing unique games of high quality for mobile consumers. Zynga is not the only developer that is seeing renewed investor interest. Glu Mobile, a developer that had been seeing trouble akin to that of Zynga, saw its shares spike by 16.5% on Monday.

Mobile gaming continues to be attractive market

Despite the problems some companies have been facing, mobile gaming is still considered a very powerful and lucrative market. Investors, though cautious, have shown that they are willing to take risks on developers that had proven their ability to establish a strong presence in this market in the past. If investor support for Zynga and Glu Mobile continues to grow, the two companies may soon find themselves back on top of the proverbial totem pole of mobile gaming.