With 35 million users, Brazil is 4th largest market of digital games
Valor Econômico
The Brazilian market of videogames still struggle to get organized as a real industry in the country. New data, however, indicate there is no lack of potential for that to come true. A study of the Dutch Newzoo - company of the sector of surveys - shows Brazil is the fourth largest global market in number of players, with 35 million users of digital games, 19.2 million men and 15.8 million women. The United States lead the ranking with 145 million users. Brazil appears for the first time in the survey, with users from 10 to 65 years. With the participation of nine other countries, the survey covers games developed for computers, mobile devices and consoles.
Those indicators give a clue to the local market, which still lacks numbers. Everything is based on assumptions and data of the businesses, says Ronaldo Bastos, Director of Atrativa for Latin America, division of games of the American Real Networks in the region. "Unfortunately, the survey has not found out how much the market generates in Brazil, but it is already a first step for the sector to structure itself", says Bastos.
One of the interesting points of the survey, according to the Director, is the breaking the myth the segment of games in the country is characterized, to a great extent, only by the figures generated in the unofficial market. The study points out that 17 million of Brazilian users, or 47% of those polled in the country, spend money on digital games, either subscribing to online services, or purchasing applications for mobile devices and consoles. With 26.4 million users, the casual games - with rules, graphics and simple mechanisms - are the most popular in the country. The games for mobile devices and social networks come next, both in the range of 24 million players.
Another highlighted data is the time spent by users with games and other media. The study shows the Brazilians spend on average 10.7 hours a week with entertainment. It is nearly twice the time spent watching TV (5.5 hours) and it is equivalent to the use of Internet, 11.3 hours. For Bastos, the study confirms the positive moment the sector is going through in Brazil, with the official arrival of consoles like the Microsoft Xbox, and Sony PlayStation. The Executive also mentions the investments made by companies of online games, like Vostu. "If before Brazil was only seen as a source of cheap manpower to develop games, now the focus is to look at the country as a consumer market", says the Director.