Chinese mobile games’ future lies in US, Europe amid tightened regulation, slowing domestic growth at home, report says

Chinese-developed mobile games are predicted to generate greater demand overseas, particularly in the United States and Europe, as tightened industry regulation and slowing growth dampen further expansion in the domestic market, according to a new report.

The US and Europe will be the “primary focus” for Chinese video gaming firms’ expansion overseas, a vast market that is forecast to reach 100 billion yuan (US$14.9 billion) over an unspecified period, according to a report published over the weekend by the research arm of technology media 36Kr.

It expected China’s video gaming market, the world’s biggest, to record slower growth because of the government’s rigid licensing process and restrictions on playing time for young gamers across the country.

The US and Europe, by contrast, have fast-growing smartphone penetration rates and higher consumption, according to the report. It also indicated that the “mobile gaming [industry] has not been deeply developed” in those markets.

The smartphone penetration rates, for example, in the United Kingdom, France, Germany and Italy – countries that are part of the Group of Seven most advanced economies of the world – reached 79.8 per cent, 78.8 per cent, 78.8 per cent and 77 per cent, respectively, in 2021, according to market and consumer database Statista. Smartphone penetration in the US, the world’s largest economy, was 82.2 per cent in the same period.