According to Strategy Analytics (www.strategyanalytics.com), mobile gaming apps continue to show strength globally with smaller second quarter (Q2) declines in the US and UK than last year.
However, emerging categories such as Travel and Health & Fitness need to find revenue through alternative business models, says the research group. Mobile gaming continued to experience seasonal Q2 declines but in the U.S. specifically those declines still placed gaming at a higher percentage of top grossing apps than in the year ago quarter.
While the gaming category continues to decline as a percentage of the top free and paid apps its strength is clearly being driven by in-app purchasing of virtual goods – a revenue model that gaming companies have exploited and others have failed to truly benefit from. Strategy Analytics says the following combination of factors will see mobile gaming grow in the second half: a larger global installed base of iPhones; an increase in spending on applications; and smaller seasonal declines than in the past.
Gaming’s strength is global with only modest seasonal declines from Q1 to Q2 in Germany, China and Brazil. If growth trends hold, gaming could come to represent 78% of the top grossing apps in the US in the third quarter. While other categories – such as Finance, Productivity and Education rise – the ability to drive revenue continues to rest with gaming companies that have used the freemium model to dominate the top grossing charts across the globe. Companies that want more revenue will need to leverage alternative business models to succeed, says Strategy Analytics.