What is the business model to learn from the growing PC game market?

It boasts a 37% share in the game market where smartphones and home video game machines are crowded togetherPC games reigning at the topThat market is growing steadily. The PC market continues to grow because the unique business model that is not seen in other industries is used, and the services acquired by eBayHunchCo-founder and has a background in investing in startups such as Kickstarter and PinterestChris DixonHe explains the business model of the PC game market as what the television, music and publishing industry should learn.

Lessons from the PC video game industry - Medium
https://medium.com/@cdixon/lessons-from-the-pc-video-game-industry-3350bb7713de

◆ PC game market
Most of PC games, the number of active usersAbout 125 million people worldwideIt broke throughSteamIt is released on the download sales platform named. Steam got about 30% of game sales as a share, and sales in 2015 reached 185 billion yen. Approximately 4500 PC games are sold on Steam, among which the top prize is "Dota 2It is a game called.


Dota 2 is a so-calledFreemiumWe adopt the business model called "game play" which is free of charge but adopts item charge system. However, most items of item that are sold even for item billing are game character's costume, which is common with smartphoneGachaIt is a different form from a system that charges consumption items that limit the number of times played, such as stamina. A game holding players all over the world "League of Legend"Also adopts an item billing system that sells costumes, and in 2014 it is only item chargeApprox. 123.4 billion yenIt is said that it raised sales of.

In other words, the PC game market is getting a lot of its benefits by engaging with core users.

◆ MOD and remix
As a business model peculiar to PC games that can not be seen in home games or smartphone games "MOD"Is given. MOD is a game that applies files and files that modify or add data created by users, and discussion including illegality has been done as MOD may start hacking at the beginning of the game In recent years, developers of official games accept MOD favorably, official support MOD production and provide development tools, flexible response can be seen. MOD is established as a culture in the PC game industry, and excellent MOD is sometimes sold as an independent product. In Steam users developedApproximately 400 million MODHas been released and the Dota 2 that appeared earlier is also "WarCraft 3It was MOD of.


Television and music that strongly protects copyrights, MOD-like business model in the publishing industry in PC games has not been established, and if you do video and music work on the user base, edit books or create secondary creations There is a possibility of developing into litigation matters. Dixon points out that "These restrictions have narrowed the heads of creators trying to challenge new things that nobody has tried, and the industry tends to shrink as a result."

◆ Cloud Funding and Feedback
Products not limited to games but various genres have been exhibited in cloud funding represented by Kickstarter, PC games boasts overwhelming popularity among many products, Kickstarter'sTotal contribution amount ranking by genre Ranking"Game" ranked No. 1 with the biggest difference of 50 million dollars (about 6.1 billion yen) to "technology" 2nd. Among game genres, PC games are the number of exhibitors, and many other PC games are also exhibited at other cloud funding sites. The most important thing in cloud funding is to collect funds from users, but for PC game developers, it is important that users participate in projects through investment as much as collecting funds.


Also, in recent trends, there are also many PC games that deliver preceding play. PC games that use the business model "Beta release → Feedback → Official release" seen in software development has been increasing in recent years, and "Prison Architect"Is a work that has raised the awareness of 19 million dollars (approx. 2.34 billion yen) for developmental funding while reflecting feedback from users obtained by Steam's early access. In addition to Steam, the number of games using the early access that is beta version by software is increasing, and the mutual relation between the developer and the user is established exactly.

Online mediaBuzzFeedJonah Peretti, who launched "Journalistic media, pointed out that the problem is not being able to build relationships with consumers who give feedback," says Jonah Peretti, "The IT company is aware of what the consumer is "Retailing" that understands what you want, long-established media is like a "wholesale business" that only sells to the person who paid the highest amount. " In other words, it is a business model such as cloud funding, beta delivery, and early release that can generate mutual benefits by communicating with the developer side and the user, but this business model is adopted in industries with a strong trading company It seems that the current situation is difficult to do.