Hamburg, Germany -- (SBWIRE) -- 05/14/2012 -- Revenue generated in the online gaming market continues to increase worldwide – it is predicted to grow annually by more than ten per cent in the period from 2010 to 2016. A significant trend in this sector is Massively Multiplayer Online Games (MMOGs). In 2011, MMOGs were especially popular in the BRIC states and the US market was also mature, while there is still potential for growth in emerging markets. In 2011, the share of paying casual and social gamers compared to all gamers worldwide was the highest in Asia, followed by emerging markets and the USA.

Social and casual games popular in all of America
In the USA, social gaming was expected to spread further in 2011 – in total, as many as approximately 40 percent of all Internet users played such online games. The most popular gaming website in this market, gauged by visits in December 2011, was Pogo, followed by Yahoo! Games. According to the "Global Online Gaming Report 2012", for Brazil forecasts for 2011 predicted that gamers would spend most of their time on casual games and playing in social networks.

Social gaming as an important trend in Western Europe
Great Britain and Germany are among the leading European markets for online gaming. In 2011, almost one fifth of total time invested in playing games in Great Britain was spent on social networks, followed by casual games; only console games had more time invested in them. Unlike in Japan and the USA, in Germany the entire gaming market grew in 2012, merely as a result of increased revenue from online and browser games. The German online and mobile game market is also expected to almost double in size between 2010 and 2015. The "Global Online Gaming Report 2012" by yStats.com shows additionally that in 2011, French gamers spent approximately 15 percent of their entire gaming time on social networks. In the Netherlands, revenue generated from games on casual websites and MMO games was forecasted to reach more than 50 million EURO in 2011 in each category. In line with this trend, almost three quarters of all Spanish online gamers were predicted to use social networks for gaming in 2011.

Online gaming markets also soar in Eastern Europe
In Poland, the value of the total gaming market increased by more than 20 percent from 2010 to 2011. In Russia, almost 80 percent of the entire online gaming market value was generated from browser games. Turkey was the fourth largest social gaming market worldwide in the second quarter of 2011 in terms of gamer numbers.

Rapid growth for revenue in the Asia-Pacific region, in the Middle East and in Africa
In Southeast Asia, revenue from online games is expected to more than double between 2011 and 2015. The social games market is also expected to grow fast in Japan – by approximately one third between 2011 and 2012. It is also shown that online gaming addiction is increasingly becoming a problem, for example in South Korea, where in 2011 more than half of all inhabitants already played online games. In China, the situation is slightly different, with massively client games spurring most of the online games market growth – for 2013, they are expected to generate more than three quarters of all revenue in this market. Early in 2012, the highest daily revenue per gamer worldwide was recorded in the Middle East. An annual increase of 25 percent in spending for online games is also expected in South Africa for the period between 2010 and 2015.

Online games market players observe strong growth worldwide
In addition to the key markets in different regions, the yStats.com "Global Online Gaming Report 2012" also provides important facts and figures about more than 20 successful players. Zynga, for example, is expecting an increase in revenue by more than 20 percent in 2012. Bigpoint, an enterprise based in Germany, had as many as 250 million registered users early in 2012 and has already added new locations in Great Britain and France. Wooga, also headquartered in Germany, was the largest social games developer in Europe in April 2012, and the third largest worldwide. Chinese online game developer Changyou also increased its revenue in 2011 by almost 40 percent compared to 2010. Developer of cross-platform games PopCap Games was bought by Electronic Arts in 2011, and is now a subsidiary of the games giant. US social games developer RockYou was also successful in 2011, entering partnerships with Peak Games and Aktiv Digital. Turkish games developer Peak Games was the fastest growing social gaming enterprise in an emerging market in 2011.

Press Contact:
yStats.com GmbH & Co. KG
Behringstrasse 28a, D-22765 Hamburg
Phone: +49 (0)40 - 39 90 68 50
Fax: +49 (0)40 - 39 90 68 51
-Mail: press@ystats.com
Internet: http://www.ystats.com

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/ystats
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ystats

About yStats.com
yStats.com has been committed to research up-to-date, objective and demand-based data on markets and competitors for top managers from various industries since 2005. Headquartered in Hamburg, Germany, the firm has a strong international focus and is specialized in secondary market research. In addition to offering reports on markets and competitors, yStats.com also carries out client-specific research. Clients include leading global enterprises from various industries including B2C E-Commerce, electronic payment systems, mail order and direct marketing, logistics, as well as banking and consulting.