India Gaming - Market Share Analysis, Industry Trends & Statistics, Growth Forecasts (2024 - 2029)

The India Gaming Market size is estimated at USD 3.49 billion in 2024, and is expected to reach USD 7.24 billion by 2029, growing at a CAGR of 15.68% during the forecast period (2024-2029).

India is predicted to rank among the top market locations for the gaming industry due to having one of the most significant youth populations in the world. The growing IT infrastructure, driven by the rising use of smartphones and high-speed internet, is one of the major factors driving the market growth rate in the country.

Key Highlights

• WEB3, a new version of the internet that integrates ideas like decentralization, VR, AR, and the metaverse, has become a more frequently used technology in video games. According to the survey of NDTV Profit, at least 30% of the 450 Web3 businesses in India are engaged in the gaming industry. The research shows USD 400 million for Web3 games in India in recent years.
• There has been a significant shift in the gaming industry in India, with a lot more focus on game development. In November last year, the Prime Minister inspired developers and innovators to take the lead in the online gaming industry by promoting his vision for a "Digital India." Since then, the Central Government has taken continuous measures to influence the trajectory of online gaming to conform to this objective. This sector requires the leadership of a nodal ministry. To offer recommendations for universal, national-level legislation to regulate online gaming, the federal government established the Inter-Ministerial Task Force (IMTF), which comprises representatives from various ministries. It has also been mandated by another group of ministers (GoM) to present the suggested tax structure and the regulatory framework for the online gaming sector.
• In the previous year, according to CNBC news, Sunil Chemmankotil, CEO of Teamlease Digital, stated that the gaming business is the "next sunrise industry," citing the sector's expanding user base and the potential it will present. As the female audience grows, more women will work in the game industry, particularly in leadership roles.
• Moreover, according to The Economic Times, India has affordable mobile data worldwide. The average cost of a gigabyte (GB) in India is USD 0.26, compared to USD 6.66 in the United Kingdom and USD 12.37 in the United States for the same data. It has led to increased internet usage, as 46% of the nation today regularly uses the internet, owning gaming as the fastest-growing industry in India.
• The COVID-19 epidemic is forcing businesses to switch from desktop to laptop computing. A senior manager of Client Solutions Group, Dell Technologies, India, states that specific industries and organizations that are more service-oriented and in the public sector are where this movement in adopting desktop computers to notebook PCs is more noticeable.

Gaming in India Market Trends

Rapid Increase in Smartphone is expected to drive the market

• Due to the market's expansion and lucrative income potential, two well-known publishers of console and PC games, Activision Blizzard and Electronic Arts, are placing a greater emphasis on mobile gaming. They compete with companies like Tencent, Sea, and Perfect World, which are predominantly involved in mobile gaming. Online advertisers and social media sites like ByteDance and AppLovin are now performing mobile game publishing.
• In total downloads this year, India overtook China as the primary consumer of mobile games. India currently has markets that are nearly 2.5 times larger than China and three times larger than the United States. There have been 15 billion (15,000 million) game downloads in the previous year. In terms of global game downloads in the current year, India had the most considerable percentage (17%).
• This year, Samsung planned to move part of its smartphone manufacturing to India from Vietnam and several other countries. The South Korean smartphone manufacturer intends to manufacture more than USD 40 billion (40,000 million) of devices in the country.
• In enabling faster game downloads than current 4G networks, 5G networks also supported the growth of mobile-based cloud gaming services and augmented reality (AR) games. One million devices may be supported by 5G in a single square kilometer, encouraging more people to play mobile games, especially multiplayer ones. As a result, the growth of mobile esports will be accelerated.

Android Games to Dominate Market Share

• Data costs in the country have recently dropped exponentially, making it one of the most affordable markets for data. It has positively impacted the number of smartphone users in the country. According to a survey by Newzoo in the previous year, the total monthly users for leading games in google play in India was 657 million.
• Such favorable conditions have positively impacted the number of mobile gamers in the country. For instance, according to a CMR study that included input from 1,124 mobile gamers aged 16 to 35, the average person has at least seven games on their phone, four of which are regularly played.
• According to a report published in the previous year by 42matters.com, more than 5,283 Indian publishers are on Google Play, all 166,039 game publishers. Some of the most prominent Indian publishers are Gammation Technologies Pvt Ltd., Words Mobile, Moonton, Moonfrog, and Games2win.com. Overall, 3% of all game publishers on Google Play are from India, which suggests the increasing dominance of Indian players in the android gaming industry.
• Among the mobile gaming segment, Android commands a significant market share, owing to the dominant share of the user base in the country. According to various studies, the country's smartphone user base is expected to surpass 750 million by the end of last year, growing exponentially with major brands such as Xiaomi and Realme. OnePlus and Samsung dominates the market. Another significant trend is that these vendors offer smartphones with Android OS, contributing to the OS's popularity.
• With the recent ban on PUBG, Call of Duty has seen an increase in the number of users. Also, the country has seen a growth in developers offering similar games. For instance, in the previous year, FAU-G, the Indian rival of PUBG Mobile, was up for pre-registration on Play Store.

Gaming in India Industry Overview

• September 2022- Sony to launch new Xperia gaming product. Sony announced its Xperia 5 IV compact flagship smartphone. Currently, the company will shortly introduce a new product. This device will be related to gaming. Moreover, Sony is launching the new PlayStation 5 DualSense Edge wireless controller in India. Motive Studios is working on a single-player, third-person action-adventure Iron Man game. Beginning in January 2023, the wireless controller started to be delivered.
• September 2022, the Wii Sports series' total of 21 holes will be introduced to the Nintendo SwitchTM Sports Golf update on November 28. Swing to stay in the game of survival golf or participate in a casual competition with family and friends.
• January 2023, Electronic Arts announced during their Crafting the Tension Art Developer Livestream Dead Space will launch at the beginning of next year for PlayStation5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. The original sci-fi survival horror game Dead Space is being rebuilt using the FrostbiteTM game engine.

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