The Interactive Software Federation of Europe (ISFE), which is responsible for the European video games industry and reports on it to the European Union, has estimated that the mobile games industry will have generated over €20 billion (£14.5bn) in 2015.
In a report titled “Mobile Games in Europe” which was conducted by Deloitte for the ISFE, they state that consumers are estimated to spend a total of over £14.5bn on mobile games through either in-app purchases or paid games for 2015. The ISFE also expect to see double-digit growth in the mobile games industry until 2017 which will make it the fastest growing “content” sector in Europe.
As a result of the huge amount of revenue the mobile games industry is now able to generate, many developers are now able to work full-time on their games and are now able to build sustainable businesses much easier than ever before. This has led to the industry now supporting over 21,000 full-time employees, most of which are working in small enterprises, the report claims.
The In-app purchase model is also said to be popular with consumers despite only a small percentage of mobile gamers ever making in-app purchases. Free games and those which support in-app purchases are now downloaded more often than paid games.
Europe is also one of the leaders in the global digital economy, with 6 of the top 10 apps coming from studios based in Europe than anywhere else in the world.
“Of the top 10 apps in the Apple iOS and Google Play app store in June 2015, six were made by game companies headquartered in Europe”, said Simon Little, Managing Director of ISFE. “We can be proud of our leading position, while keeping the focus on fostering a business environment where skills and talent keep our companies at the top.”