2009 proved to be a record year for video game sales in Australia. For the first time, Australians spent more than $2 billion on games hardware, software and accessories.
According to independent market research group GfK, total revenue for the industry in 2009 was $2.05 billion – an increase of 4 per cent from 2008 when we spent (nearly) $2bn on videogames.
GfK’s data includes all sales from hardware, gaming peripherals and traditionally boxed software, yet excludes revenue generated from online retail sales, downloadable content, online games subscriptions and games delivered to mobile phones.
Breaking it down, accessories saw the biggest growth, up 31 per cent on last year. Software sales were up 6 per cent while hardware sales remained steady.
Ron Curry, CEO of the Interactive Games and Entertainment Association, says last year’s sales were healthy, especially compared to the rest of the world.
“Australia’s interactive entertainment industry continues to maintain sales despite the global economic slowdown,” he says.
Curry also noted that this year’s growth came despite the lack of the Government stimulus package the industry benefited from in 2008.
I’m curious whether anyone has calculated the amount you personally spent on games last year. Was it more than the year before? Did the “global economic slowdown” affect your games spend?
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