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Journalism of Courage
Come summer, and one would find kids holed up in their rooms, punching feverishly on their computers. These young and not-so-young ones are hooked on to the next big thing in Indian entertainment industry 8212; gaming.
The gaming industry in India has finally found its niche segment with Internet cafe culture, increasing number of Internet users, broadband penetration and availability of international titles in India. The gaming market in India which stood at 26 million in 2004 is expected to increase to 336 million by 2009, according to McKinsey.
Zoeb Ali Khan, a 11-year old gaming aficionado, spends at least 14 hours per week playing his favourite strategy, adventure and sports game on his home PC or on a playstation. He saves his pocket money to get those latest CD gaming titles from the market. The various options for these fans are Massively Multiplayer Online MMO games which can be played with unlimited number of players across the continents through broadband or limited player or even individual player himself.
Abhinav Garg, a student at State University of New York, feels, 8216;8216;It8217;s more fun to play MMO games. One has more effects, complete with vibrations as if one is actually in the game. It8217;s more competitive but you need to have high speed broadband connection8217;8217;. Interestingly, India in 2006 is comparable to China in 2001 when China8217;s games market started to develop and an online games culture began to evolve.
Says Vishal Gondal, CEO of gaming firm, Indiagames: 8216;8216;This trend can see a further upswing in online gaming with increased broadband penetration, right marketing and price positioning. In the near future, gaming is bound to take over the Bollywood industry as the next entertainment destination8217;8217;.
Piracy to mobile
The compact disc games for consoles like personal computer, X-Box or Playstation are widely pirated and are available at cheaper rates from any roadside vendor. This has hit the nascent industry. Gondal, emphasises that pricing will play a major role in combating this threat. While the original game titles are available for anything between Rs 500-1500, a duplicate is available for as low as Rs 50, he says.
But online gaming is relatively immune to software breaches or piracy, which has hit the market for console gaming. Console gaming, however, does not come cheap. Microsoft8217;s X-Box 360 slated for a pre-diwali launch in India costs nearly Rs 20,000. 8216;8216;The X-Box 360 will serve to be a catalyst to fuel the poised exponential growth and expose Indian gamers to next generation gaming experiences,8217;8217; says Mohit Anand, country manager, Microsoft Entertainment and Devices Division.
However, there is no denying that it is the mobile gaming market, which is driving this trend. It contributes 5 per cent to the global gaming business with GSM and CDMA operators clocking an average of 6,00,000 paid downloads per month, as per McKinsey figures.
Says Lloyd Mathias, marketing director of Motorola India: 8216;8216;The mobile gaming experience does not cost anything. Mobile handset is already an integral part of a consumer8217;s lifestyle8217;8217;. Consumers can download gaming-based applications from either the mobile phone company or the service provider at nominal prices. As the market matures, gamers are moving beyond simple java based games to more exciting 3-D games and multiplayer gaming via GPRS/Bluetooth
Bollywood is in
According to a Nokia official, in the last few years there has been a growing popularity for localised and familiar themes such as cricket and Bollywood movies.
Agrees Rajiv Hiranandani, country head, mobile2win.com, 8216;8216;Along with Hollywood hits like Spiderman, Sholay made it to top of the download charts going beyond 1,00,000 mark, setting a completely new record in Bollywood content download8217;8217;.
It8217;s a win-win situation for both Bollywood and game developers. Bollywood based games would serve as a brand extension and can also be promoted overseas with a substantial Indian population.
With more rural penetration of mobiles and better infrastructure, the next 5 years will witness a boom in mobile gaming industry, currently bringing in a revenue of Rs 45 crore, feels Hiranandani. The Electronic Sports World Cup, the biggest LAN gaming event in the world, has already arrived in India. It is expecting registrations to the tune of 30,000 for the finals to be conducted in the first week of June in Delhi.
The Indian gaming market is a potential multi million-dollar market with its large, young and urban population hungry for content. Also, it has become the next best option for the advertisers, looking for product placements in the games. 8216;8216;But advertising should not take away the gaming experience, it should add to it,8217;8217; warns Gondal.
