MCV/DEVELOP News, events, research and jobs from the games industry
The French video games market generated more than $2.4bn (1.6bn) in revenues in 2015, which is a slight increase of 1.4 per cent compared to the previous year.
The industry is expected to keep on growing by 1.5 per cent until 2018. France is the third European market in terms of revenues.
49 per cent of the 30.7 million French gamers spend money on games according to data company Newzoo. They spend an average of $164.01 (115.3) per year, which is higher than both Germany and the UK.
According to French industry trade body SELL, physical games retail is the main driving force behind the market, as it accounts for 33 per cent of the industry’s revenues.
SELL is also the organisation behind the Paris Games Week. The event has been held every year since 2010. 307,000 visitors attended in 2015, which represents a 13 per cent jump compared to the previous edition.
Concerning platforms, Sony’s PlayStation 4 is dominating the French market: over 1m units have been sold in 2015, according to research firm Gfk. Surprisingly, the PS4 is followed by Nintendo’s 3DS, which sold 686,000 units in 2015. Microsoft’s Xbox One is far behind with only 298,000 units sold during the past year.
France is also marked by the decreasing amount of specialised gaming stores. GAME France had to close down in 2013 and the number of indie stores hasfallen by 57 per cent between 1996 and 2012.
Micromania remains the principal specialised distributor and retailer in the country, with 430 stores and 31 per cent of the market share.
Population: 64,641,000
Capital City: Paris
Currency: Euro
GDP (Per Capita): $42,338.6
KEY RETAILERS
Auchan, Leclerc, Fnac, Carrefour, Micromania, Darty
KEY DISTRIBUTORS
Koch Media, BigBen Interactive, Exertis, Just For Games, Micromania
TOP DEVELOPERS
Ubisoft, Quantic Dream, Bigpoint, Gameloft, Eugen Systems, Focus Home Interactive, Ketchapp
NOTABLE GAMES FIRMS WITH A LOCAL OFFICE
Ubisoft, EA, Capcom, Activision Blizzard, Gameloft
