MOBILE
GAME REVENUE IN THE U.S. HITS $151 MILLION IN Q4 2006
WITH STRONG YEAR-OVER-YEAR GROWTH, ACCORDING TO TELEPHIA
Preloading
Game Demos is a Key Merchandizing Lever
to
Drive Purchases
SAN
FRANCISCO--March 5, 2007--On-portal mobile
game revenue jumped 61 percent year-over-year to $151
million in Q4 2006 (see Table 1). Nearly 17.4 million
mobile consumers downloaded a mobile game last quarter,
up 45 percent from a total of 12 million downloaders
a year ago, according to Telephia, the world's largest
provider of syndicated consumer research
to the telecom and mobile media markets. On-portal
mobile game revenues also account for 74 percent of
total mobile game revenues, while off-portal downloads
account for the remaining 26 percent. While revenue
is growing, revenue growth is slowing consistent with
a market that is maturing.
Table
1: On-Portal Mobile Game Revenue and Audience Size YOY
Trending ( U.S. )
Metric
|
Q4
2005 |
Q1
2006 |
Q2
2006 |
Q3
2006 |
Q4
2006 |
%
Growth |
Number
of Downloaders |
12.0M
|
12.8M
|
13.5M
|
15.7M
|
17.4M
|
45%
|
Total
Quarterly Revenues |
$94M
|
$134M
|
$141M
|
$140M
|
$151M
|
61%
|
Source:
Telephia Mobile Game Report, Q4 2006
Mobile
games have not been limited to the typical console game
demographic of men 18-24 years old. The demographic
is much broader, and includes women and all ages. Sixty-five
percent of all games are purchased by women. Forty percent
of all games are purchased by mobile consumers age 25-36.
"The
mobile game industry has seen strong growth very quickly
with titles that appeal to a broad demographic. However,
the industry is faced with a new challenge in order
to sustain its growth. Several new mobile content services
such as mobile video and full-track music are also competing
for the mobile consumers' attention and wallet,"
said Kanishka Agarwal , Vice President of Mobile Content,
Telephia.
The
mobile game market continues to be a highly competitive
space, with nearly 90 publishers vying for a piece of
the market. EA Mobile leads the on-portal game download
market with nearly 28 percent of total revenue. Gameloft
and Glu Mobile share the second tier with 11 percent
each. Namco, I-play, Digital Chocolate, Hands-On Mobile,
Superscape, Capcom and Oasys Mobile make up the next
tier of players with revenue shares ranging from 2-6
percent.
Using
Preloads as a Merchandizing Lever
As
the mobile game market gets more crowded, publishers
are keen on finding new solutions to get a leg up on
their competition. Top placement on carrier download
decks is a hard-fought battle among publishers and a
lot of emphasis is focused on that strategy. But preloading
a game onto devices is another critical merchandizing
lever. As part of Telephia's new Mobile Game Merchandizing
product, the company will be tracking preloaded game
decks. Preliminary Telephia findings are consistent
with industry consensus that Tetris by EA Mobile is
the most preloaded title in the U.S.
"Preloaded
game demos provide consumers with easy access and a
quick sample of the game title, increasing the likelihood
of them purchasing the game and ultimately driving revenues
for the publishers. Publishers must focus effort on
handset preload decks in addition to carrier download
decks as a critical merchandizing tool," added
Agarwal.
About
Telephia
Telephia
is the world's largest provider of syndicated consumer
research to the telecom and mobile media markets. Telephia
is your connection to the digital consumer. Since 1998,
executives at service providers, device manufacturers,
content providers, and retailers have relied on Telephia
data to make confident competitive strategy, marketing
and resource allocation decisions. Telephia uses its
unique measurement tools and large-scale consumer panels
to completely understand the digital consumer's behavior,
attitudes and experience.
To
learn how Telephia data can help you understand the
digital consumer and track your competitive performance,
please contact us at (415) 395-0500 or www.telephia.com.
###
Press
Contact US: Maria Bumatay
Email:
mbumatay@telephia.com
Phone:
+1 415 637 4904
|