More than 35 million households in the United States are interested in subscribing to a cloud gaming service, according to Parks Associates.
The market research firm says that demand will grow to almost 39 million household by 2024. The firm found that 78% of interested internet households in the U.S. would pay $9.99 per month for such a service.
Interest in Cloud Gaming
“A variety of players are testing the cloud gaming market, as it has tremendous opportunities for recurring revenues and service expansion, provided companies can deliver a strong and positive consumer experience scalable to mainstream audiences,” said Parks president and CMO Elizabeth Parks said in a press release.
Dr. Dhananjay Lal, the Senior Director, Advanced R&D for Adeia, a company that develops software underlying digital entertainment offerings, said that the potential of cloud gaming is “expansive.” This includes the technology itself, the enhanced user experience and new marketing opportunities. There are challenges, however, around network performance, convenience for consumers and models of monetization. These are hindering widespread adopting of cloud gaming, Lal said.
Some big players have gotten involved in online gaming in recent years. Gaming has both benefit from and driven new technologies and architectures such as edge computing.
In June, 2021, Verizon used the keynote at the E3 virtual event to provide an update on how 5G network is driving gaming. The carrier is partnering with Electronic Arts (AE), Dignitas, Riot Games and Team Liquid. Verizon says that its Mobile Edge Computing (MEC) infrastructure and 5G network enables games to be downloaded in seconds and enables data-intensive competition. This level of performance, the company says, previously only was available on game consoles. “Totally new, immersive ways” to play now are possible, the company said.
In September, 2020, Amazon Luna, a cloud-based gaming service, began early access. The gaming service runs on Amazon Web Services and enables instant play without lengthy downloads, software updates, configurations or hardware. Players can switch between devices.