In news (over on GamesIndustry) that shouldn't surprise anyone, the mobile gaming business is making a lot of money and will probably continue to make more and more money each year for the foreseeable future. The report comes from two companies: the analytics firm App Annie, and International Data Corporation. According to their figures, the mobile gaming business will top $12 billion in worldwide revenues in 2013.
While the data does not cover 100% of the mobile gaming business, it does cover a significant portion and is useful for estimating trends. The analytics software from App Annie is apparently used by more than 190,000 apps, including those from more than 80% of the 100 highest grossing iOS publishers.
Other figures from the report include the estimate that in 2013 more than 800 million portable devices were used for gaming. That number includes tablets, smartphones, and handheld games consoles like the Nintendo 3DS and the PlayStation Vita. The companies predict that by the end of next year that 800 million will have risen to 1.2 billion. Tablets and smartphones will take up a larger share of this number, but handheld games consoles will apparently not decrease but instead stay steady. These consoles are expected to increase their average revenue per user in 2014 too.
Other unsurprising news is that microtransactions make up a staggering amount of the money gained by the mobile gaming business: apparently, more than 50% of revenue, with growth predicted to continue. Is that percentage higher or lower than you expected?
