Analyst: Consoles Will Generate $8 Billion in Online Sales in 2013
Cai sees growth in digital distribution services for games and videos as well as "avatar-based microtransactions" for services like Xbox Live avatars, PlayStation Home, and subscription fees for Xbox Live and console MMO games.
Underpinning all that growth will be an ever-increasing user base with broadband internet connections. The report notes that Microsoft currently leads the online market with the successful Xbox Live Marketplace, but Sony and Nintendo may catch up in the near future with their respective marketplaces PlayStation Store and Wii Shop Channel.
Online sales on consoles are currently in the hundreds of millions but rapidly expanding. Microsoft, for example, made $180 million in the last year. Counting digital sales on PCs, Electronic Arts earned $90 million in just three months. Meanwhile, across the entire PC market, digital distribution was worth nearly $2 billion last year.
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Maybe they should tell that guy who proclaimed consoles to be dead soon. lol
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I think you mean Alex St. John?
http://www.fatfoogoo.com/2008/07/alex-st-john-%E2%80%93-pc-games-run-by-micro-transactions-are-the-new-wave-of-the-future/ -
I think what St. John was saying is that consoles, like the PC now, will move to digital distribution for games and not just add-on DLC. If anything, this analysts estimate supports St. Johns argument. The real question, assuming consoles will do $8 billion in 2015, is how much content will be sold through traditional brick/mortar retail? My guess would be alot less than currently and that most sales will be through online distribution. If true, than $8 billion doesn't actually seem like such a bold prediction.
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