Despite accusations that the PS3 has alot of work ahead of itself to catch up to the juggernaut sales of the Wii and the millions of subscribers in XBOX360 land, it is clear that things are looking up. People are adopting the system, and hardware is selling. Accessories are selling. According to Pricewaterhouse Coopers, console games, the largest category and one dominated by Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft are expected to grow by 6.9% annually, from $24.9 billion last year to $34.7 billion in 2012.
Obviously, Blu-Ray won the format war, and people are beginning to adopt the new disc format faster than DVD was adopted initally. However, one must question what will happen to PS3 sales when and if attachments will be sold for other consoles? Whilst a Blu-Ray attachment for Wii doesn’t seem likely (DVD would probably be chosen first), Microsoft’s console could get one and change an important purchasing factor for the PS3 in the eyes of the consumer. Many PS3 exclusives are no longer exclusives these days and its common to see games available for both systems. One can wonder if Sony can keep up when its technology starts becoming more popular; perhaps, a victim of its own success?
From Schaeffer’s Daily Market Blog
While many on Wall Street are speculating that the video-game industry is benefiting from a flash-in-the-pan due to Nintendo’s family-friendly Wii console system, a new report from PricewaterhouseCoopers indicates that nothing could be further from the truth. According to the company, the video game industry is expected to grow at a 10.3% rate from $41.9 billion in global sales in 2007 to $68.3 billion in 2012. The only media sectors expected to outpace the video game industry are online advertising and access.
Console games, the largest category and one dominated by NTDOY, Sony (SNE), and Microsoft (MSFT) are expected to grow by 6.9% annually, from $24.9 billion last year to $34.7 billion in 2012. However, PC-based gamers are apparently a dying breed, with PricewaterhouseCoopers forecasting a PC 1.2% growth-rate decline from 2007’s $3.8 billion to $3.6 billion in 2012.
An oddity from the report, in-game advertising is expected to see an annual growth rate of 16.7%. That means that gamers can expect conspicuously placed ads within videogames themselves; like staring at a Pfizer (PFE) billboard while you hijack a brand new Ford (F) Mustang in the 2012 edition of Grand Theft Auto .
