How on earth is it making so much money?
Cloud gaming is on the rise, somehow. A report from Cloud Dosage states that cloud gaming revenue is set to surge 173% globally by 2030, estimated to hit nearly $29 billion, but this is a shocking sentiment for myself and many other gamers who don’t know a single person who uses a cloud gaming service.
With so many people in the gaming community excited about local hardware, the RTX 50-series and a multitude of handheld gaming devices hitting the shelves, it’s strange that cloud gaming is experiencing a quiet boom when, to most enthusiasts, it doesn’t even feel worthy of discussing at the water-cooler.
However, reports show that cloud gaming is growing exponentially, five to eight times faster than mobile or physical games. However, it somehow remains a ghost segment of gaming to traditional gamers. So, where is all of this money actually coming from?
Who is actually paying?
If it’s not me or my friends, who is it?
There are plenty of gamers who want to enjoy the latest titles without committing to a $500 console or even a $1500 PC. Instead, these users want to use the devices they already own, whether it be their phone, tablet, or even a smart TV, but not be limited to just mobile games.
In emerging markets around the world, like India and Southeast Asia, 5G expansion and affordable smartphones are becoming the first way for millions of people to experience AAA games. Many users want to try gaming out before making any large purchases, even down to games, due to the ever-increasing cost of the latest titles.
Alongside this, many users have access to cloud gaming services without actually using them.
