India to achieve double digit growth in gaming: IT Minister
The Dollar Business Bureau
The Confederation of Indian Industry’s (CIIs) Indian Gaming Show (IGS) 2017, a four day event, commenced on February 2nd 2017, in New Delhi. Supported by the Ministry of Electronics and IT, this show brings together biggies in the world of gaming like HTC, Epson, PlayStation, Asus and Samsung under one roof.
Speaking at the event, Minister of Electronics and IT P.P Chaudhary announced that the $890 million dollar Indian Gaming Industry is expected to achieve double digit growth. He also stated that increasing smartphone users, rising disposable income, and wider accessibility of the internet combined with the catching up of gaming trend, will remain key factors in the development of the Indian Gaming Industry.
As per report released on Gaming Industry in 2016, India contributed 0.55% to the world gaming industry. The minister also drew attention to India’s fifth position the world over in game downloads, in 2016.
Chaudhary is of the opinion that India’s demographic edge, growing disposable income and shifting gaming preferences are some macroeconomic indicators that will lead to a surge in India’s contribution to the global gaming industry in the next five years.
The average time that goes into developing a game is approximately 24 months, with an investment of $5 million - $12 million. Game developers in the developed world are driven to outsource certain activities in order to reduce costs and time. India’s large pool of tech savvy youth and gaming enthusiasts is attractive for such outsourcing business activities. A growing interest in gaming among Indian youth can translate to big growth figures for Indian gaming in the near future. The IT boom in India in the past decade is also a launch-pad for gaming industry in the country to take off to new highs.
