An Increase in Mobile Phone Sales and the Decreasing Price of Mobile Games Has Helped a Growth of 150% from 2003 - 2004 in the Mobile Gaming Industry.

DUBLIN, Ireland -- Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/reports/c27963) has announced the addition of China Mobile Gaming Industry Trend Report to their offering.

Background

Data shows that the value of the mobile game market was over 0.8 billion RMB in China during the year 2004, which was an increase of 150% over the year 2003. This was a result of several factors. One factor was the increased sales volume of mobile phones that support WAP, JAVA and BREW. Another factor was the decrease in charges for mobile games. These factors combined with the actual desires of the masses quickly increased the number of game users. By the end of 2004, there were over 10 million people in China that paid for mobile game services.

We think that the first market adjustment for the Chinese mobile game market will be in 2005. This is partly due to the fact that the industry overestimated the overall market value. Although the mobile game market is increasing, the increase rate is not as high as expected. The main concern is that the medium and small service providers and ISVs that entered the market early provided an impetus to the industry. This will create a fervent competition as others enter the market because of the early successes. This competition will be promoted by developers that base their games on intelligent mobile phone control systems and will increase as more competitors enter the market. The market adjustment in 2005 will also stimulate investments. The increased capital will allow the bigger service providers to enter the market, depressing the room for development of smaller providers and ISVs.

Based on a good understanding of the development stages for the mobile game market, this report provides suggestions with respect to market orientation, product strategies, and the development of user demand. This will allow the service providers to grasp the fundamental aspects of the development trends and outline the opportunities of the market. By heeding these suggestions, service providers can ultimately boost the healthy development of the mobile gaming market.

Findings

- The scale of the Chinese mobile phone gaming market in 2004 was over 0.8 billion RMB, an increase 150% over 2003. There was a tremendous increase in games built on top of the WAP, JAVA and BREW technologies, while those based on short messaging declined. The value of the short messaging game market for 2004 was 0.49 billion RMB. Its market share decreased from 93.8% in 2003 to 60.9% in 2004. The scale of the short messaging game market will slowly increase, continuing to lose its ground in shares until it begins to gradually decline after the stable commercial use of 3G technology is realized.

- Due to the overestimated potential of the market, the first market adjustment will be in 2005. Although the mobile gaming market is increasing, the increase rate is not as high as expected. This is due to several shortcomings in the industry. One reason is the penetration rate of 2.5G terminals is still low. Another reason is there is a large gap between the supply of game products and user demands. Also, the industry failed to establish customer habits of using services offered by a single business model. In 2005, the market value of mobile gaming is expected to reach 1.441 billion RMB. This is an expected increase of 79% over the 2004.

- After 3G networks are deployed, the user's experience will be drastically improved and the prices of services will go down. These facts, combined with the popularization of the intelligent mobile phone, will make the online gaming over mobile phones skyrocket. This is expected in 2007, with a market value of 0.7 billion RMB by 2008. Unlike the current model, which is based on "Applications", the model after 3G deployment will be similar to that of the "service model" used in the Internet gaming industry. The habits of the user will also change into that similar to the computer user, where they will install and delete games of their choice.

- The drastic competition in the mobile gaming market effects both domestic and foreign developers, especially those just entering the market based on intelligent mobile phone control systems. Small to Medium Service Providers have to find solutions to survive in such fierce competition. Currently, game developers and service providers are beginning to implement promotional strategies, but they have, so far, failed to find an effective means of approaching the users' desires or fostering good habits.

- There are several problems facing those who wish to develop the gaming market over cell phones. The single tier pricing structure fails to attract some users. The pursuit of low cost solutions to gain short term benefits is beginning to wear on the user base as they tire of unfulfilled desires. The products have had serious flaws in design and production, which has decreased the users' confidence. It is vital that the industry seek to understand the users' desires. The developers and service providers must create products that are loved by the users and promote and maintain its popularity.

Topics Covered

1 Definition and Study Scope of Mobile Gaming

2 Current Status of the Mobile Phone Gaming VAS Market

3 Anticipation of Development for the Mobile Phone Gaming VAS Market

4 Analysis on Influence of 3G Deployment on the Development of the Mobile Phone Gaming Industry

5 Analysis on Network Carrier's Mobile Phone Gaming VAS Market

6 Analysis on the Market Competition Among the Major Mobile Gaming Service

Appendix: Data Collection Process & Methodology

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