This market research study presents a comprehensive analysis of the global online gaming market by type (MMO, casual, and digital console) and by geography (APAC, Europe, North America, and ROW). Leading vendors identified in the market are Activision Blizzard, Electronic Arts, Giant Interactive, GungHo Online, Microsoft, NCSOFT, Riot Games, Smilegate, Sony, Take-Two Interactive Software, Valve, Wargaming.net, and Zynga.
Technavio’s market analysts estimate the global online gaming market to grow at a CAGR of almost 12% between 2016 and 2020. The increasing popularity of free to play (F2P) games where the players are not charged to join the game is the fundamental driver for the market. The availability of better gaming infrastructure such as audio-visual technology and availability of high-speed broadband networks are expected to propel the market during the forecast period. At present, APAC dominates the global online gaming market by accounting for around 43% of the overall market share and is likely to witness steady growth during the forecast period. The use of broadband and smartphones to distribute mobile games is expected to reflect positively on the growth of the market in this region by 2020.
The new market research report from Technavio presents a breakdown and analysis of the online gaming segments by type.
“One of the latest trends gaining traction in this market is the increase in the number of women who play online games. The social perception of online gaming is changing with more females actively participating in mobile gaming. For example, In the US, 50% of the gamers are female. Moreover, several gaming companies are introducing more female characters in their games in an attempt to attract more female gamers. For example, the Marvel comics character Thor will now be depicted as a female,” says Soumya Mutsuddi, Lead Analyst, Media & Entertainment, Technavio Research.
In 2015, the massively multiplayer online (MMO) segment dominated the global online gaming market by holding around 62% of the overall market share. The fast-paced action involved in MMO games is the key factor responsible for the growth of this segment. The introduction of consoles that can support MMO games by companies such as Microsoft and Sony and the manufacturers of Xbox and PS consoles is projected to contribute to the growth of the global MMO gaming market in the coming years.
The key vendors in the global online gaming market include Activision Blizzard, Electronic Arts, Giant Interactive, GungHo Online, Microsoft, NCSOFT, Riot Games, Smilegate, Sony, Take-Two Interactive Software, Valve, Wargaming.net, and Zynga. The global online gaming market is highly competitive and is set to experience steady growth due to the increasing number of mobile game providers and growing demand from emerging countries. The vendors compete with each other on the basis of gameplay, price, differentiation, genre, graphic and audio quality, and platform type. The competition is expected to intensify as the vendors are using new business models and upgrading the sophistication of their games to boost market shares.
A more detailed analysis is available in the Technavio report, Global Online Gaming Market 2016-2020.
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