Sales of console videogames are expected to rise slowly over the next several years, according to a new study by PwC, despite the expected release of new devices by Sony and Microsoft.
The long-ailing videogame industry, which is gathering next week for the E3 show in Los Angeles, has long been expecting a sharp upward bump in console sales following the release later this year of Sony‘s PlayStation 4 and Microsoft‘s Xbox One, both of which have a large base of dedicated customers.
PwC says it expects worldwide console games sales to grow 4.2% to $25.98 billion this year, up from $24.93 billion a year prior. In 2014, sales are expected to rise another 6.4% to $27.62 billion.
That‘s far less than the 28% growth the industry saw in 2007, after the last batch of new consoles were released. But it‘s still potential relief for game makers, which have been seeing steady declines in game sales for more than a year–captured in PwC‘s own numbers, which show nearly a 10% drop in 2012.
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(Published June 4, 2012 on The Wall Street Journal’s website.)