The Middle East and Africa were expected to record similar growth, while the United States and Asia would expand more slowly. Forecasts put US growth at 6.7 percent and Asian growth at 10 percent. Europe’s market, valued at around US$9.4 billion in 2006, was projected to reach US$15.4 billion by 2011. The US market was expected to rise to US$12.5 billion.
Germany’s game market was forecast to grow around 9.7 percent annually and reach US$3.4 billion by 2011. The United Kingdom, then worth roughly US$2.8 billion, was projected to expand by 11.2 percent per year. France was expected to grow by 10.2 percent.
Online games were driving much of Europe’s expansion. Console software was also growing and expected to remain the industry’s largest revenue source, but online growth rates were higher. European online-game revenue was around US$1.2 billion in 2006 and was forecast to approach US$3.6 billion after five years. Console-game revenue was projected at US$7.3 billion by then.
Broadband adoption supported online-gaming growth. Nearly five percent of users held online-game subscriptions in 2002, rising to almost 10 percent in 2006. The forecast expected the share to exceed 15 percent by 2011. European mobile-game revenue was projected at around US$3.1 billion.
