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September 03, 2021

Why Are Major Console Gaming Companies Turning to the Mobile Market?



Console gaming companies like PlayStation have made a big name for themselves through the years and cut out a pretty decent market share for themselves in the past two decades. And with various technological advancements, it has become easier for these console gaming companies to make games that were initially designed exclusively as PC and turn them into console games.



There is still some development needed in terms of overall cross-play between PC and console platforms, but overall the market is stable and prosperous. So, why are major console gaming companies turning to the mobile market?

Is the mobile market a threat to the console gaming companies, or is it just a new customer base? In this article, we look at whether it is a smart strategic move for these companies to enter the mobile market.

A New Growth Vector

Even though PlayStation has done exceptionally well with the launch of the PS5, it is still evident to Sony that the mobile market offers a new growth vector for them. Let’s put it into perspective, as of 2020; there were roughly 239 million active mobile gamers in the US and Canada. That is about 65% of the population. It is also approximately a 12% increase from 2019.

The revenue these two countries produce in 2020 in the mobile gaming industry was approximately $16.2 billion; who wouldn’t want to enter this market? At this point, mobile gaming accounted for almost half of the gaming market worldwide and generated $75 billion in 2020. If console gaming companies are focused on making money, which they are, then the numbers should speak for themselves.

Why Is The Mobile Industry So Popular?

The quick answer is accessibility. Most people in modern society have access to a smartphone. It forms part of your daily life, and most people can not function without having their smartphone with them. It might have started as a communication device, but a smartphone fulfills various other functions today, one being a gaming platform.

If gamers aren’t capable of playing casino games online or offline on their PC or consoles because they are traveling, then mobile device comes in handy. Mobile devices are portable, easily accessible, and readily available. Let us put it this way; you get two types of mobile phone users, traditional gamers and people that believe that they are not gamers.

The traditional gamers in this very simplified example are your PC and console gamers. These guys are willing to spend some money on buying games and technology. It forms part of their hobbies, their entertainment or past times. These gamers will play games on their mobile phones if they do not access their preferred console or PC.

Then you get your non-gamers; these guys would spend money buying consoles or PCs because they don’t see the need. But they still have a phone, and a friend told them about a fun mobile game, so they try it out. Quickly these guys are hooked on the game, and they continue to play.

The person in the first example forms part of Sony’s original target market. The person in the second example will never form part of Sony’s market unless Sony expands into the mobile market. By expanding into the mobile market, with the right technology and games, these console gaming companies could increase their market shares.

In Conclusion

Let the numbers speak for themselves; console gaming companies are revenue-generating companies, and their main reason for expansion would be to generate more revenue.

The mobile market has a new potential customer base that can be reached without implementing new technology. With the right strategy at hand, these console giants can significantly increase their profits.



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