Although game subscription services are on the rise, they are still relatively small to make a global shift in the industry. When looking at numbers, services like Game Pass account for only 4% of gaming revenue in the North American and European markets.
- This share is $3.7 billion, according to new data shared by Ampere Analysis’ Piers Harding-Rolls (via Axios).
- In comparison, a total player spend in North America and Europe is almost $81 billion. This sum includes in-game purchases, disc sales, and other spending.
- Microsoft’s Game Pass, which has 25 million subscribers, has about a 60% share of the game subscription market.
- Despite the audience’ growing interest, these services can’t be compared to their analogues in other industries.
- For example, streaming services accounted for 83% of the US music industry revenue in 2021. Netflix offers over 3000 movies to its subscribers in the US, while Xbox Game Pass has a library of 500+ video games.
- SIE president Jim Ryan also thinks that game subscription services won’t dominate the market like Netflix or Spotify do in the music or film industry.
However, leading game companies continue to explore this niche and launch new services. On March 29, PlayStation introduced an upgraded PS Plus subscription, which will offer, among other benefits, access to a library of hundreds of modern and retro titles.