Data.ai expects mobile game spending to rebound to $111B in 2024
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Mobile app analytics firm Data.ai expects mobile game spending to rebound to $111.4 billion globally in 2024. This is the first time the firm expects growth after two years of declining consumer spending.
Since Data.ai began collecting data in 2015, mobile game spending saw uninterrupted growth until peaking at $115.8 billion in 2021. Over the last two years, spending totals waned about 3.7% per year to 2023’s $107.5 billion expected total.
“The decline was partially a correction from the rapid growth seen at the start of the pandemic. As consumer behavior has started to return to a ‘new normal’ we expect mobile game behavior to be more similar to pre-pandemic trends,” said Lexi Sydow, head of insights at Data.ai. “The decline in mobile game spend has already leveled out by mid-2023.”
The firm argues that reversing the trend of mobile game spending declines is a positive sign for the overall games industry. Unlike the growth super-charged by the pandemic, the current growth trajectory is more moderate.
Of course, there continue to be headwinds for the games market. Data.ai pointed to macroeconomic impacts on discretionary spending, crackdown on fingerprinting in advertising, the growth alternative app store distributions and regulations on gaming, especially in China, as potential hurdles.
The firm expects the U.S. to be the largest driver of spending growth, accounting for 40% of aggregate spending year-on-year.
“We’ve found that mobile game spend is closely related to disposable income, particularly in markets like the U.S.,” said Sydow. “As global economic conditions are slowly improving we’ve
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