Social Networks are Gaming’s Future in the UK

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Britain has more online and console gamers than anywhere else in Europe, according to the 2009 UK National Gamers Survey.

  • 73% of those questioned regularly play games
  • Males 13-19 spend on average 11 hours per week playing games
  • Boys as young as eight play games 7 ½ hours a week. The findings from
  • 86% of girls play games
  • 42% of people over the age of 50 now spend more time gaming than reading magazines
    10% of gamers in the Netherlands admit to regularly making illegal copies of popular console games
  • 4% of gamers in Britain admit regularly making illegal copies of popular console games
  • In the UK, only 11% of gamers on social networks use them as their primary gaming destination – less than half that of the US

www.nationalgamerssurvey.co.uk

The 2009 UK National Gamers Survey (www.nationalgamerssurvey.co.uk) is part of a series of identical national nationwide surveys conducted by TNS and Gamesindustry.com in the Netherlands, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Belgium and the United States amongst more than 13,000 respondents in total. The series is branded Today’s Gamers (www.todaysgamers.com). Five firms were partners in the survey’s launch: RealGames (Zylom), Keesing Games, RTL Group, GamePoint and SPIL GAMES. Both the national and international reports are available as of this moment as well as raw data for custom queries. The UK survey was conducted among 2,226 respondents aged eight and above from June to July 2009.

There are 50 Million iPhones and iPod Touch Devices Worldwide

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Apple’s App Store surpasses 2 Billion downloads according to Gamasutra. There are:

  • More than 85,000 Apps available
  • 50 million iPod Touch and iPhone customers worldwide
  • Over 125,000 developers in the iPhone Developer Program

It seems like it might be getting crowded.

Japan’s Mobile Market for Games was $178.75 Million in 2007

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According to an article in the New York Times, Japan’s mobile market was ¥16.75 Billion in 2007 ($178.75 Million US). The article also gives some info on Hudson, one of the first Japanese publishers to embrace the iPhone market. Hudson has launched 26 Apps so far and received 3 million downloads. The company plans to release 20 titles per year on the platform going forward.

Games are an $80 Million to $133 Million Annual Business for Apple

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According to an article in the Wall Street Journal, Apple makes between $60 Million and $100 Million per quarter from sales of software through the App store. Considering this is Apple’s 30% cut from sales on the platform, partners are making between $140 Million and $250 Million per quarter. Since games are only about a third of the 65,000+ applications available, we can estimate games as an $80 Million to $133 Million business for Apple each year. For partners, this would make the market $186.67 Million to $310.33 Million annual market. In total, Games on iPhone are estimated at $266.67 Million to $443.33 Million annual market.

XBLA Games Can Be As Large As 2GB

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Microsoft has raised the cap for file sizes on XBLA to 2GB according to IGN. It was originally 50MS and then 150MB. Due to the file structure of XBLA, this is likely the largest file size that can be allowed unless Microsoft changes the file structure on the system.

Turbine Estimates the Console MMO Market at $2.3 Billion in 2011

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According to an interview with Eurogamer, Turbine’s revenue estimates for 2011 suggest that the PC MMO market will be worth $2 billion

The company expects the Console MMO market to be relatively untapped in 2011 and estimate it to be worth $2.3 billion in revenue.

Games for Windows Certification Process Explained

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The Games for Windows Certification process takes 18-27 days. To begin, you click here

Here’s the process and estimated times for each step:

  • Request Non-Disclosure Agreement (2-3 business days)
  • Submit GFW Branding Application/Set-up Windows Live ID Account (1-2 business days)
  • Trademark Licensing Agreement Provided (5-7 business days)
  • Access granted to Prosource Games for Windows Art Guidelines (2-3 business days)
  • Submit Packaging and marketing materials for Approval (3-5 business days)
  • Download self-certification tool and test title (3-4 business days)
  • Submit test results and get title approval (2-3 business days)

There are some marketing benefits that come from being certified including quotes for press releases, possible inclusion in events, and other promotional activities by Microsoft. The last requirement is to send 50 retail copies to Microsoft.

5 Million PlayStation 3 Motion Controllers Projected in 2010

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IndustryGamers reported that the new Sony PlayStation 3 Motion Controller will launch in Japan in March 2010 and in the US in the first half of 2010. The estimate in the article cites 5 million units as the projected sales figure.

The Netherlands has 9.3 Million Gamers

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According to the 2009 National Gamers Survey which TNS NIPO and Newzoo/Gamesindustry.com conducted this summer among Dutch people over the age of 8 who have internet access, there are 9.3 million people in the Netherlands that play games:

  • This is 70% of the online Dutch population
  • Young Dutch men between aged 13-19 play games for 10 hours a week
  • 83% of the online population in the United States plays games
  • 73% of the online population in the United Kingdom plays games
  • 67% of the online population of Belgium plays games
  • 65% of the online population of Germany plays games
  • 63% of the online population of France plays games
  • Dutch gamers are less inclined to pay for games than gamers in other countries.
  • Only 12% pay for mobile-telephone games compared with 48% in the United Kingdom.
  • Not surprisingly, the percentage of people who pay is highest in the case of consoles: 63%.
  • 10% of console players admit to making copies, often illegally.
  • 31% of people who play online multiplayer games and virtual worlds are paying customers
  • In the Netherlands 7% of the people who play games on social networks say this is the main destination to play games, whereas in other European countries this figure is 10% and in the US it is 24%.

The 2009 National Games Survey is one of an international series of surveys conducted by TNS and Newzoo/Gamesindustry.com in the Netherlands, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Belgium and the United States under the name Today’s Gamers. Five firms partnered in the survey’s launch and have full access to all the data: RealGames (Zylon), Keesing Games (including Denksport), RTL Group (including RTL Nederland), Gamepoint (including Spelpunt.nl) and SPIL GAMES (including spelletjes.nl).

Facebook has 300 Million Users, Playfish has 50 Million

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Sebastian de Halleaux, COO of Playfish spoke at GDC Austin. Here are they the data points:

  • Playfish has 50 million active users
  • Accounts are growing at a rate of 1 million users every day
  • There are 1 billion game sessions every month
  • Facebook has 300 million users, and worldwide
  • There are 1.5 billion web users