Mobile game publishers grossed nearly $540
million in top-line revenue in the U.S. in 2009, up at a 12% CAGR from
$382 million in 2006, according to a new study from SNL Kagan,
"Economics of Mobile Games."
In
"Economics of Mobile Games," SNL Kagan ranks the leading 21 mobile game
publishers by U.S. revenue from third-quarter 2005 to fourth-quarter
2009. At the top of the list is EA Mobile, which SNL Kagan estimates
will bring in record revenues exceeding $115 million in 2009. Gameloft,
Glu and Namco Bandai round out the top four.
While profitability varies widely by publisher, the overall margin for
the industry is on the rise. SNL Kagan estimates that the U.S. mobile
game industry's EBITDA margin has grown from negative 19% in
third-quarter 2005 to an estimated 17% in fourth-quarter 2009. The
study found that publishers with libraries of classic game hits or
those that develop popular games using their own intellectual property
have the most financial success.
The
report also examines how the iPhone and Android are quickly altering
the marketplace. As SNL Kagan analyst John Fletcher notes: "The mobile
game landscape has changed dramatically in the past two years with App
Stores and smartphones representing a new and fast-growing frontier. We
expect to see strong sales from publishers who have evolved with the
changing business model, while those focusing on carrier deals will
likely have more subdued growth."
About the report SNL
Kagan's "Economics of Mobile Games" offers a detailed analysis of the
mobile games industry, including an in-depth look at the most popular
mobile games in a variety of categories, as well as a careful
examination of the various business models used by mobile game
developers and carriers.