IDC Predicts Growth For Digital PC And Mac Gaming Market Through 2017

Sony may think that the PC gaming market is dying in the face of the next generation of game consoles like the PS4 and the Xbox One. The PC gaming market may not be as big as it once was, but research firm IDC is predicting growth on the digital front. The research firm says that the gaming market for digital PC and Mac will grow through 2017.

IDC predicts that the growth rate for digital gaming on PC and Mac computers will grow by 4% per year between 2012 and 2017. While the market is expected to grown, revenue in the market is expected to slip over that period.

IDC says that the decline in revenue will be mostly due to cannibalization of casual browser games, such as Farmville 2, migrating to smartphones and tablets. The revenue decline is also blamed on a decline in subscription revenue for games like World of Warcraft.

The growth in PC and Mac digital gaming markets is attributed in part to improving living standards in countries like Brazil, Russia, India, and China where game consoles have been unable to gain the traction they have in some countries. IDC predicts that the digital PC and Mac gaming market outside the US will grow by more than 5% through 2017.

SOURCE: IDC