A new study shows that 70% of U.S. homes will have video game consoles by 2005 (close to the percentage of homes with VCRs), that 60% of Americans play computer/video games on a regular basis, that the gaming industry put 220,000 people to work last year, and that those jobs generated US$9 billion in wages and tax revenues.
The report was commissioned by the Interactive Digital Software Association (IDSA) and researched by Nathan Associates, which used publicly available sources ("primarily the economic censuses and annual surveys of the U.S. Department of Commerce") to make its conclusions.
Last year, gaming software sales (including computer games) hit $10.5 billion, showing an average 15% annual growth from 1997. For comparison, the report showed annual revenue growth rates of 1.6% for video tape rental and 4.6% for movie production/distribution. Gaming software's continued phenomenal growth is likely, with a new set of advanced video game consoles about to hit the market and the report's estimate that 55 million people will play games online by 2004, up from 39 million online gamers last year.
The gaming industry's growth in wages, tax revenues, and employment also crushed other major U.S. industries. Wages paid in the gaming industry grew at 17.4% annually from 1995 to 2000 and employment at 10.1%; movie production/distribution saw 9.2% wages growth and 5.2% employment growth. Gaming's figures also beat computer manufacturing, consumer electronics, and computer storage. To top it off, gaming software companies spend 14% of their revenue on R&D (Research & Development), while other entertainment industry concerns spend only 9-12%.
|
|
Copyright © 1999 - 2024, Highwaygames. All Rights Reserved. Use of this website constitutes acceptance of the highwaygames.com User Agreement and Privacy Policy.