COMMENT
Analysts say the enthusiast and performance-level PC gaming markets are going strong
TRADE TUSSLE ONE OF MY colleagues has been duped by his local computer store. He took his broken Mac to the retailer who told him he’d need a new motherboard. After forking out several hundred pounds, the laptop still didn’t work. A trip to an Apple store confirmed the worst: he hadn’t
received a new motherboard. The store had rebooted the computer and charged him for parts that weren’t used. Now I know cases like this are rare – and absolutely do
PC gaming hardware sales to hit £3bn in Europe
‘Resilient’ sector to grow over next three years By Dominic Sacco
THE TRADITIONAL PC market may be facing some of its toughest challenges yet, but the games industry can give it a much-needed shot in the arm. Data from Jon Peddie Research (JPR)
shows that PC gaming hardware sales in Western Europe are expected to rise over the next three years to almost £3.15 billion ($4.89 billion) in 2016. Globally, JPR predicts that the gaming
hardware market will increase to £12.2 billion ($18.94 billion) in 2014, £12.7 billion ($19.71 billion) in 2015 and £13.38 billion ($20.77 billion) in 2016. “We have found Western Europe to
be a very diverse and resilient market for gaming on the PC platform,” JPR game industry senior analyst Ted Pollak told PCR. “The higher end ‘enthusiast’ and upper mid range ‘performance’ level equipment markets are quite strong as a result of the popularity of simulation
gaming, as well as niche MMOs like EVE Online.
“Despite the upcoming release of next generation consoles [Xbox One and PS4], the effect of mobiles and tablets and a lukewarm economy, we are forecasting growth of around £119.23 million ($185 million) to almost £3.02 billion ($4.7 billion) of Western European PC gaming hardware purchases over the next year.” Additionally, in this issue of PCR you
can read plenty of other games-related content, including our PC gaming hardware sector guide on page 47, the top video games to stock this Christmas on page 55, the latest mice and keyboards on page 65, headsets on page 79 and more. We’ve also asked our Retail Advisory
Panel about the sector on page 31, cover the latest news on page eight and also take a look at how gaming apps have affected retail on page 18.
not reflect the state of UK PC retail as a whole. But the fact is, my colleague had no simple way of reporting his case or seeking compensation. Taking them to court is not a viable option for everyone, nor is making a claim with Trading Standards.
His story comes at a significant time. Dealer group
Synaxon UK has called for a separate tech regulator body to police the industry. The firm has had problems with unscrupulous dealers in recent years (including one which claimed to be a member of Synaxon, before attempting to buy stock with no intention of paying for it). While things are improving, UK MD Derek Jones says more should be done to stamp out rogue traders. Trade association CompTIA, meanwhile, believes educating the channel, making it more professional and self-regulation is the answer. We spoke to many other industry experts on the issue – you can make up your own mind and read the full story on page six. I’d be keen to hear what you think: do get in touch – you can tweet us @PCR_Online or email me below.
Dominic Sacco, Editor
dominic.sacco@
intentmedia.co.uk
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