SuperData Research’s latest revenue reports have been revealed, and they look quite promising for this year’s publishers. According to a press release shared by the organization, the interactive entertainment industry “generated $91 billion [USD] in revenues in 2016.”
SuperData’s research provides a bit more information regarding the total revenue income for the industry. Mobile games were the largest revenue earner, making $41 billion USD. In comparison, retail only hit $26 billion total revenue, and free-to-play landed at $19 billion. As for mobile’s enormous success, SuperData Research believes the industry has finally come into its own. “The mobile games market has started to mature and now more closely resembles traditional games publishing, requiring ever higher production values and marketing spend,” the report claims.
2016 was also a phenomenal year for eSports. “Despite its relatively small size ($892 million [USD]), eSports has become the focal point for publishers, TV executives, and advertisers,” SuperData Research reports. “A string of investments in pursuit of connecting to a new generation of media consumers has built the segment’s momentum, as major publishers like Activision, Riot Games, and Electronic Arts are exploring new revenue streams like selling media rights in 2017.”
Overall, 2016 was a strong year for digital owners. SuperData reports that consumers “increasingly download games directly to their consoles, spending $6.6 billion in 2016.” And PC players racked in $34 billion in revenue, “driven largely by free-to-play online titles and downloadable games,” the organization suggests. Meanwhile, SuperData Research was blunt about virtual reality’s uneven debut. “A high price point, the absence of a strong content line-up, and difficulties with properly delivering through retail cooled consumers’ expectations of the Oculus,” their report notes. “We expect firms with more experience in hardware manufacturing like Sony and HTC to take the lead in 2017.”
With 2016 closing out the year with high revenue, 2017 looks to capitalize on that momentum. Check back at the start of January as analysts begin making predictions for the upcoming year ahead.
