Smartphone Games Accounted for Nearly Half Of Global Gaming Market In 2020 – $75B

The smartphones of today have become more powerful and technologically advanced than ever before, becoming an exciting new platform for different types of software such as games. According to data presented by 123scommesse, smartphone games generated $74.9M in 2020 – a 43% share of the global gaming market.

Smartphones Biggest Source Of Revenue – 43% Of Total Revenue From All Devices

In 2020, the global gaming market generated an estimated $177.8B. Smartphone games account for the largest share, having generated 43% of the total amount which equates to $74.9B. The next largest share belonged to console games which generated $51.2B in revenue for 2020.

Boxed/downloaded PC games also generated a significant amount of revenue with 34.2 in 2020 followed by the moderate earnings of Tablet games and Browser PC games which made $11.4B and $3.2B respectively.

2021 Projections For Global Games Market

2020 was a big year for the global gaming industry, as lockdowns kept a majority of the world indoors for a time, increasing video game engagement across the board. Because of the dramatic and unexpected spike experienced in 2020, the global games market is actually expected to contract in 2021 by 1.1% to just $175.8B.

Smartphone games are projected to experience the highest growth in 2021 with a projection of a 4.7% YoY increase to $79B. The only other segment that is expected to grow in 2021 is the Tablet Games segment which is projected to earn $11.6B in 2021 – a 2%YoY increase from 2020.

Revenue from Browser PC Games is expected to have the largest contraction in 2021 at -18% YoY, with projected earnings to be less than $3B this year. Console Games are also expected to dip in 2021 after having a big year in 2020 with the release of the next generation consoles of both Playstation and Xbox. Revenue from consoles is expected to be just under $50B in 2021 after crossing the $50B mark in 2020.

Rex Pascual, Esports editor at 123scommesse, commented;

“Since smartphones became technologically capable of operating high-performance games, it has become the most lucrative source of revenue for the video game industry. As smartphones become even more and more technologically advanced, expect the smartphone market to gain an even larger share of the global gaming market in the coming years.”