Jordan Bevan
In 2023, the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region solidified its leadership in the global mobile gaming market, contributing a substantial 64% to the total revenue. This commanding position is attributed to the region’s staggering 5.2 billion mobile subscribers, surpassing half of the global mobile subscriber base, as reported by GlobalData.
GlobalData’s most recent thematic report, titled “Mobile Gaming,” discloses that the revenue from mobile gaming reached $124 billion in 2023, with projections indicating a growth to $195 billion by 2030. Among countries, China emerged as the unequivocal leader, claiming around 31% of the global revenue share. The United States followed at a distance with a 17% share, trailed by Japan, South Korea, and Germany.
Rupantar Guha, Principal Analyst, Thematic Intelligence at GlobalData, emphasizes the pivotal role of 5G networks in bolstering mobile gaming growth in APAC. The region accounted for a remarkable 75% of global mobile 5G subscriptions in 2023, boasting 1.8 billion subscriptions, primarily concentrated in China, South Korea, and Japan. This figure is expected to rise to nearly four billion by the end of 2028, ensuring the continued dominance of the region in the mobile gaming market.
Despite the thriving market, mobile gaming companies face multifaceted challenges. Regulatory pressures loom large, with various aspects like in-game spending, data privacy, child safety, antitrust, artificial intelligence (AI), and app store commissions causing disruptions. In 2023, China’s draft regulation aimed at curbing in-game spending had a significant impact, resulting in an $80 billion decline in market value for gaming giants Tencent and NetEase.
As per a recent study, global consumer spending on mobile games experienced a second consecutive annual decrease, totaling $107.3 billion in 2023. This coincided with a significant decline in downloads, marking the first instance of such a decrease and settling at approximately 88 billion.
Guha concludes that regulatory challenges will persist as a disruptive threat for the foreseeable future. The dynamics surrounding in-app purchases, data privacy, child safety, antitrust regulations, AI, and app store commissions are expected to continue influencing the landscape of mobile gaming companies globally.
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