Pokémon Go Passes $6 Billion In Revenue
If massive revenue from a “free to play” game isn’t enough to convince the investing public that mobile gaming is here to stay, perhaps the latest announcement from Sensor Tower, a market research firm, is.
Sensor has revealed that one of the most successful, and free, mobile AR game titles of all time, Pokémon Go, has surpassed $6 billion in player generated revenue.
Last year alone, the title generated $1.3 billion for Niantic, Pokémon Go’s developer and publisher. Coming on six years’ old now, the game still remains the top geolocation AR game title on earth by revenue.
Free-to-play (F2P) is where the real money is.
It’s estimated that F2P games generated over $75 billion in revenue last year, with eight titles alone reaching the $1 billion revenue mark. These games generate massive revenues by selling in-game digital items like avatar upgrades, skins, tokens, access to exclusive content and brand advertising.
However, while the mobile games business has already surpassed console and PC in terms of revenue, and F2P is a driving factor behind it, a new technology is being developed that could allow F2P mobile gaming revenues to truly explode.
The technology, in-game, real-world commerce, could allow for actual transactions in-game. Not just digital items, but real ones.
If you’re a gamer, you may have noticed “branding” work being done by large corporations within games. Louis Vuitton, for example, partnered with Riot Games to create branded skins within “League of Legends.”
Those branded skins had the famous “Louis” print all over them. The purpose was to sell the digital version of the item for use on the gamer’s avatar….
However, gamers could not purchase actual Louis Vuitton items inside the game. This new technology hopes to change that.
With in-game commerce tech, a gamer could purchase the actual handbag, or actual shoes with the click of a thumb, and have them delivered to their home. Of course, not everyone could afford “real” Louis Vuitton, but the technology could allow for any brand, any vendor at any price point to sell items in games.
Essentially, we’re looking at a future where gaming is shopping… and shopping is gaming. But for real things!
Discover more about this technology, and the patents behind it, HERE
Or read mor about Pokémon Go’s incredible F2P success, HERE
Source: https://venturebeat.com/2022/06/06/pokemon-go-passes-6b-in-lifetime-player-spending/