Report: Total U.S. Game Spend To Hit $24.7B In 2010

A Monday report from market research firm Newzoo said total consumer game spend in the U.S. -- not including hardware, just games -- was $24.7 billion, down 2 percent from 2009. While game spend was just short of flat year-on-year, the more interesting development is where gamers are spending their money. "Our data shows consumers are not simply moving away from console games, but spreading their budget across more platforms," said Newzoo managing director Peter Warman. "Their choice of game genre and platform depends on time, place, social setting and the need they are seeking to satisfy at that moment," he added. Newzoo said U.S. gamers will have spent $10.6 billion, or 43 percent of total U.S. game spend, on console games (including DLC and handhelds) in 2010, 29 percent less than 2009. PC and Mac boxed game sales were down 19 percent year-on-year to $2.1 billion. Meanwhile, every single other category has seen double-digit percentage sales growth, including games for mobile devices, MMOs, casual game portals, social networks and PC and Mac downloads. In the UK, total game spend in 2010 is estimated to be £3.7 billion ($5.7 billion), Newzoo said, down 3 percent. The data [PDF] comes from the firm's Total Consumer Spend 2010 report, releasing in January next year.