While the rest of the world struggles through economic gloom, the videogames industry in Australia in 2009 is on track to outperform last year’s record results.
The Interactive Games and Entertainment Association (iGEA) has revealed that for the nine months up to the end of September, sales are up 8.3% this year over last, according to official GfK figures. In 2008, Australian’s spent nearly $2 billion on videogame hardware, software and accessories. It looks like we’re well on track to surpass that figure this time around.
The majority of the growth has come through console hardware (up 10%), while software has accounted for a 5% increase.
“The rise of family entertainment as a genre continues to underpin much of the industry’s growth,” says Ron Curry, CEO of the Interactive Games and Entertainment Association.
“Christmas will see iGEA members delivering a number of highly anticipated games, along with some surprises, which should see sales surpass the records set in 2008.
“Australia’s interactive games industry continues to see healthy growth now that video and computer gaming has become as mainstream in popularity, as watching television or surfing the net.”
So, how about you? Have you found yourself spending more on games this year than last?
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