On April 21, digital gaming market research firm, Newzoo, published a new market research forecast on different gaming platforms’ global market shares. It forecast that by the end of 2016 the global video game market will reach $99.6 billion.
The report states that mobile devices will be leading gaming platform in the coming years. Consoles and PC follow second and third. Tablets will continue to remain small scale while webgames and handheld games will decline. VR is included in all mobile, console and PC sections as it can be played on different gaming platforms.
Screenshot by Newzoo, current market share of different gaming platforms
Newzoo has two major reasons why mobile games will be the leading platform for games. The first is the decline of handheld games. According to research on video gaming platforms conducted by the International Data Corporation, the sales of handheld gaming consoles has been declining. At the same time, market shares on mobile have been increasing. The second reason is that large screen smart phones are eating tablet games’ market share. While the PC and consoles area grows steadily, mobile will use its advantage and become leading platform in gaming.
Decline of sales of Handheld game consoles in 2013 and 2014
Growth of smart phone game revenue from 2013 to 2014
Newzoo predicted gaming market’s average growing rate will be 6.6% at 2015 to 2019
According to Newzoo, mobile will become the leading gaming platform while other platforms wane or taper off. Ultimately, the video gaming market will be continue growing at a rate of 6.6% annually between 2015 to 2019.
