Game Developers Conference

Germany has surpassed France and the UK and is now the largest gaming market in Europe, according to industry experts. This year's Game Developers Conference Expo kicks off today in San Francisco, and Germany Trade & Invest will have representatives on hand to highlight opportunities in German gaming.

"Germany's market growth and hot spots like Berlin are attracting start-ups and content developers. Broadband coverage is excellent and smartphone ownership jumped 50 percent in one year," said Julia Oentrich, gaming industry expert at Germany Trade & Invest in Berlin.

Factors such as Germany's advanced IT-infrastructure and international workforce make it attractive for innovative gaming companies. Wooga, a Berlin-based content creator for Facebook and iOS, saw its user base grow 185 percent in 2011 and is now the third largest social games developer in the world. The company has employees from 28 countries and its games are localized in seven languages.

Germany has seen greater uptake of online games than other EU countries. Casual gaming, digital downloads, and free-to-play MMO (massively multi-player online) games are driving this growth. "A very strong German games industry is ensuring a continuous stream of fresh, well localized, and high quality games," according to Peter Warman, CEO of the Netherlands-based market research firm Newzoo.

Gaming revenues continue to result mostly from data carriers and downloads (82 percent). Germany is Europe's leading market for in-game purchases. Turnover for virtual goods is expected to reach EUR 340 million in 2014.

Germany Trade & Invest recently released a new fact sheet, "The German Gaming Industry", available online at http://www.gtai.de/ict-io-gaming.

Germany Trade & Invest is the foreign trade and inward investment promotion agency of the Federal Republic of Germany. The organization advises foreign companies looking to expand their business activities in the German market. It provides information on foreign trade to German companies that seek to enter foreign markets.

Germany Trade & Invest
Andreas Bilfinger
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SOURCE Germany Trade and Invest