by N. Evan Van Zelfden
Sure, the game industry just had a fantastic year, but it could have been even better, says NPD senior account manager Michael Klotz.
Dallas, Texas — During a lunch session at the Game Business Law summit, hosted at SMU's law school, The NPD Group's senior account manager, Michael Klotz, noted that in the United States, one out of every four entertainment dollars was spent on games.
"Previously, people thought that games might be recession-proof," Klotz said, addressing the elephant in the room. Klotz points out those numbers were early in the year, before most people had begun to feel the effects of a recession. But later in the year, those numbers have dropped.
August had 9% growth over last year. September saw a 7% decline. October had 12% growth, and November grew by 8%. Klotz believes that those numbers should have mirrored the blistering growth experienced earlier in the year.
"We're already being affected by the recession," states Klotz. One of the good things about the video game industry, Klotz reports from consumer surveys, is that gamers have no plans to spend less on games in the future.
He believes the PlayStation 2 provides an incredible value to consumers who want to play Guitar Hero, don't own a home console, and will not spend four-hundred dollars on a next-gen system.
"The game industry is growing, but it has been impacted by the recession," concludes Klotz. "We probably would have seen even more growth if it hadn't been impacted by the current economic climate in the U.S."
