INFLUENCE OF MOBILE VIDEO GAMES ON TOTAL GROWTH OF THE VIDEO GAME INDUSTRY

Abstract

Mobile phones, WAP and Java prepared the field, but for enormous growth of mobile video games industry and mobile applications in general, in author’s opinion, the most significant event was the decision of Apple corporation to open its virtual store called App Store. Suddenly a centralized platform where tens of thousands of programmers and other creators could offer their games and entertainment apps became available. Millions of users could for the first time download these products easily and quickly and for free. The concept was joined by Google and smartphones with Android operating system, so on this platform then the most popular video game, Angry Birds, was downloaded 648 million times, which in turn attracted advertisers. The mobile games market, 20 years after the first commercially successful game for mobile phones, Snake, took the lead in the entertainment industry and the revenue of the mobile games will soon pass 100 billion USD annually. Nonetheless, the programmers look at new horizons – in the coming years the difference between smart phones and game consoles as a gaming platform will become less and less visible.