Report: Online game revs tripling by 2012

DFC Intelligence predicts that income from MMOGs and digitally distributed content will rise dramatically in the coming years.

Today, industry research firm DFC Intelligence, issued a report predicting that online game revenue will increase at a startling rate. Thanks to the proliferation of high-speed Internet connections, DFC thinks that the worldwide online game market will pass $13 billion by 2012. That's nearly triple its current estimated size of $4.5 billion. By region, DFC estimates that 50 percent of online game revenue will come from East Asia, 25 percent from North America, 18 percent from Europe, and 7 percent from Japan.

While the vast majority of online game revenue currently stems from PC games, DFC foresees a rapid rise in income from online content sold on Xbox Live Marketplace, the PlayStation Store, and the Wii Shop. "By 2012, revenue from digital distribution on console systems is expected to pass $1 billion," read the report.

The research group also augurs that sales of in-game items will account for a whopping 40 percent of all online game revenue--or around $5.2 billion--by 2012. Most such items are offered in PC MMORPGs, but are also available for console titles such as Project Gotham Racing 3.

70 Comments

  • kazzu

    Posted Jun 1, 2007 3:33 pm PT

    there are way too many MMOs out there. only half are decent. hopefully there will be some good ones comming out that i can get into and add to this income XD

  • ELDDJOC

    Posted May 31, 2007 8:18 pm PT

    Noooooo !!

    More online no-brainer fat freaks !!

    How many more blank-eyed no-lifers do we need to see before we recognize that this is a social problem that needs to be resolved !

  • Daytona_178

    Posted May 31, 2007 5:36 pm PT

    Well i guess well have to wait and see wont we!

  • comthitnuong

    Posted May 31, 2007 4:22 pm PT

    With so many MMO's coming out, I wouldn't be surprised.

  • mik_evil

    Posted May 31, 2007 3:38 pm PT

    If you want to get rich, invest in online companies and weight loss clinics for all those sun starved obese kids.

  • yarow12

    Posted May 31, 2007 2:52 pm PT

    MMOs RULE, World Domination Baby! WOOT!~ XD

  • gbrading Site moderator

    Posted May 31, 2007 2:15 pm PT

    Hmm, an interesting prediction. Of course, financial analysts can't really predict gobal market trends particularly accurately, most of it is just guesswork. It'll be interesting to see if they turn out to be right, or in a whole different ballpark.

  • AgileNate

    Posted May 31, 2007 1:59 pm PT

    I hope this doesnt happen since a good source of income is the Online market suck as Live Marketplace. Half the in-game items available for purchase are a rip off and they could plan items for marketplace instead of adding it right to the original software purchased.

  • rokkuman09

    Posted May 31, 2007 12:53 pm PT

    They might just be right, but who knows.. there is no way to know the future for sure.

  • thegreat_one3

    Posted May 31, 2007 11:56 am PT

    they are taxin that azz

  • imelitenow

    Posted May 31, 2007 11:11 am PT

    must i say again analyst cant see the future

  • jknight5422

    Posted May 31, 2007 10:07 am PT

    "more stupid analysts and their crap. Remeber when they said DS will lose or ...and all sorts of crap." --razu_gamer

    You need them. Also, you didn't state who said what about DS. Some analyst firms are better than others.

    I, for one, don't plan on buying maps. Further, online FPS games could become less fun if every person that plays them is too highly skilled in playing. Newcomers will not want to put in a learning curve of several months just to become a comparable player & have to pay for maps to stay current every month or two. Especially if the maps are $10 each. That's insane.

  • pete_merlin

    Posted May 31, 2007 9:50 am PT

    banana hammock

  • Jon_Wolfy

    Posted May 31, 2007 9:09 am PT

    I say stick to the offline games and add online compatibility. Nothing extravagant either. Just enough to keep it interesting after your done offline.

    None the less if it costs extra money a lot of people will push away so that won't make a difference if the situation is presented.

  • Yammazul

    Posted May 31, 2007 9:08 am PT

    ElmorePOW said:

    "We will see the days that gaming doesen't belong to gamers anymore. We builded gaming culture, and now it is taking new step to everybody's life - which is good - but in the future, we find it funny that the thing that is so crucial part of your life, was separeted in terms, and was called 'gaming'.

    But, I think _we_, who endured 4 and 8-bit graphics, watched those blocky characters to grow something that merely looks human, are the people who will be the kings and queens of that world of tomorrow. We know, that the thing everybody calls life - was infact, called 'gaming'. We were the people who enthustically tried to understand the few kilobites of virtual worlds, to understand vast lands of tomorrow.

    I don't even try to sound sane."

    I'll have whatever this guy has been smoking.

  • BIGART312

    Posted May 31, 2007 9:02 am PT

    wow just focking sucks.

  • fluffebunnie

    Posted May 31, 2007 8:57 am PT

    I'm old school so I like a nice box and book for my games. However, some of these older arcade games and cute little games like that are pretty cool as downloads.

    In terms of MMORPGs, seriously make the pain stop. I know a lot of people like playing these (and that's fine), but let's get some really good offline RPGs (with stories and endings) cranking out.

    "The research group also augurs that sales of in-game items will account for a whopping 40 percent of all online game revenue--or around $5.2 billion--by 2012."

    Does this refer to microtransactions? If so, they can eat me. I guess gamers like being milked for extra skins, maps and things that should be (and always have been) free. I guess kids coming up now don't remember a time when mods were free.

  • MetalContra

    Posted May 31, 2007 8:30 am PT

    I will continue to game online for free

  • ---n00b_kid---

    Posted May 31, 2007 7:59 am PT

    single player campaign games will get shorter for more development on the multiplayer so they can sell u later maps, weapons, etc

  • bradley134

    Posted May 31, 2007 7:59 am PT

    Eh.

  • Lycen

    Posted May 31, 2007 7:51 am PT

    As long as there is a money fee, I will not be playing any of those games.

  • Adeboli

    Posted May 31, 2007 7:20 am PT

    Sales of in-game items account for 40% of revenue, ehm? Call me sceptical, but I seriously doubt this will ever happen as long as developers keep ripping of players with high prices and little to no new content on these in-game additions.

  • DevilHacker

    Posted May 31, 2007 7:14 am PT

    1billion! Why the hell are we not taxing this stuff!

  • Phazevariance

    Posted May 31, 2007 7:10 am PT

    I've practically stopped playing PC games all together now, since I hate spending $1500 to upgrade every two years. Consoles FTW. As each console goes online, more and more people will join no doubt. Even hand helds are online these days... it's only expected that the money increases along with the demand.

  • ldonyo

    Posted May 31, 2007 6:54 am PT

    Predictions are easy, especially when they're based on nothing more concrete than speculation.

  • mr_killer_man

    Posted May 31, 2007 6:16 am PT

    I can only speak for me and my PS2. I can't buy any of those games and my pc is getting slower by the minute. So there will be no games on it.

  • smfes

    Posted May 31, 2007 6:13 am PT

    The earth is going udner just because of gaming >_> guess we humans spend way too much time and it and way too much money. gee and i already play wow and i live in europe!

  • dr_taffin

    Posted May 31, 2007 6:04 am PT

    Actually, that headline should read as follows:

    "Mayans: World ending by 2012." Respect to MaDNuGgU, who pointed this out before me.

  • chrisdojo

    Posted May 31, 2007 5:24 am PT

    teh crystal ball...

  • Yuna08

    Posted May 31, 2007 4:44 am PT

    Can you imagine how many 'rubbish' online games china has made each year? MMORPGs are wearing out. With the similiar objective (fight and gain levels/items), soon people will get bored of it.

  • razu_gamer

    Posted May 31, 2007 4:24 am PT

    more stupid analysts and their crap. Remeber when they said DS will lose or ...and all sorts of crap.

  • edhc44

    Posted May 31, 2007 3:42 am PT

    Did we really need research to figure that out?

    Nevertheless, I agree with ELDDJOC... :/

    Elmore, if you're not sane, a lot of people share your insanity ^^

  • RaiKageRyu

    Posted May 31, 2007 3:30 am PT

    Online frenzy for all!

  • ELDDJOC

    Posted May 31, 2007 2:25 am PT

    That is bad news - with so many idiotic online freakshows willing to spend their lives and earnings all on MMORPGs - there would be nothing left for the dedicated single player ......

    Sad ......

  • G_Tizzle

    Posted May 31, 2007 1:58 am PT

    The curret gen consoles might not be around in 5 years time... forget the XBL, PS store and wiishop!

  • joshuahaveron

    Posted May 31, 2007 1:52 am PT

    I agree totally with elmore

  • ColdfireTrilogy

    Posted May 31, 2007 1:51 am PT

    "We builded gaming culture" - lol

    Sorry, had to you just didn't sound like someone who has gone through the 8/16 bit era. I do agree TOTALLY with what you said though.

  • 2p4eva

    Posted May 31, 2007 1:31 am PT

    If you watch the video 'era of connected gaming', hear Peter Moore saying that its crazy we have to get up, go to a store, buy a CD just to play data. When high bandwidth connections become available to almost everyone, it should make sense to digitally distribute it. I can only hope they sort out DRM by then....

  • ElmorePOW

    Posted May 31, 2007 1:20 am PT

    We will see the days that gaming doesen't belong to gamers anymore. We builded gaming culture, and now it is taking new step to everybody's life - which is good - but in the future, we find it funny that the thing that is so crucial part of your life, was separeted in terms, and was called 'gaming'.

    But, I think _we_, who endured 4 and 8-bit graphics, watched those blocky characters to grow something that merely looks human, are the people who will be the kings and queens of that world of tomorrow. We know, that the thing everybody calls life - was infact, called 'gaming'. We were the people who enthustically tried to understand the few kilobites of virtual worlds, to understand vast lands of tomorrow.

    I don't even try to sound sane.

  • Faephoenix_Eyes

    Posted May 31, 2007 1:14 am PT

    lol yea this was kinda predicted easily. Especially with the mmorpg games, ppl of all sorts of ages are playing like mad at such a fast growing rate. even grandpas and grandmas play games!

  • Makhdoom82

    Posted May 30, 2007 11:03 pm PT

    Do you need a genius to predict all that .... everyone knows population is growing more and more countries are prospering and becoming developed instead of being in the developing stage !!! So ofcourse more people will join !!! More people more money !!!

  • vanhalendlrband

    Posted May 30, 2007 9:34 pm PT

    not if we all don't buy it, they only assume upon whats happening right now, and then they include inflation and all that **** IF they don't do this, the stock can never go up and down, its not set in stone. We can all decide not to buy-in and paying for extra content on a game we already payed 75 bucks for and, if your a PS3 fan, 800 bucks or whatever on a system. If you want to still go ahead, but i don't think i will, espescially if they're just unlocking things on a disc, like in Phantasy Star Universe, you pay 14 bucks a month just for them to unlock different sections of the disc. lame.

  • zeecorner

    Posted May 30, 2007 9:33 pm PT

    next gen it could be all digitally distributed stuff, but then stuff like gamefly would go under, and I would hate to see that.

  • jkdeadite

    Posted May 30, 2007 9:15 pm PT

    Crazy...

  • Metamorphos1s

    Posted May 30, 2007 9:02 pm PT

    pffft... the world is ending by 2012... oh well...

  • RipStrike

    Posted May 30, 2007 9:02 pm PT

    Oh gods, like we need more incentive for the locusts to swarm.

    ...I'm not sure if I meant gaming devs or players there.

    Yes, I'm jaded.

  • NetGod

    Posted May 30, 2007 8:41 pm PT

    In order of importance.
    The top 5 things i look for in a potential game purchace:
    1. Is the game fun and addicting?
    2. Is it multiplayer? (Guantlet/Diablo style)
    3. Is it online multiplayer? 4. Does it have good graphics?
    5. Will I play it more than once or twice?

  • kemar7856

    Posted May 30, 2007 8:10 pm PT

    every game needs to have some online features

  • bobmcguire

    Posted May 30, 2007 8:08 pm PT

    yay make belief worlds. much better than the real one in many ways. no wonder its so popular.

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