Reports

China's mobile gaming market - including revenues from both single-player and multi-player games – increased approximately 48% YoY to reach roughly RMB 42 billion (USD 6.4 billion) in 2015, and is on track to increase roughly 24% to over RMB 51 billion in 2016. Market growth rates have slowed significantly compared to those of the past several years as the feature-phone-to-smartphone conversion of China's handset user base and the overall mobile gaming market reached heavier saturation. However, with many of the weaker firms now pushed out, Marbridge expects more rational market development, along with a boost from the budding trends in virtual reality-based games and mobile e-sports, to drive continued market growth.

As revenue and user growth in China's domestic mobile gaming market slowed in the first half of 2016, the country's major mobile gaming firms continued to actively pursue overseas expansion initiatives. At least four of China's top mobile game publishers announced planned investments in western, Indian, Japanese, or Southeast Asian mobile gaming firms in Q2 2016.

Investor interest in domestic mobile gaming assets remained strong, with at least 24 domestic mobile gaming M&A or venture financing deals announced in Q2 2016. The majority of the investments announced in Q2 2016 were made by gaming companies or venture capital firms, but at least four of the acquirers were from traditional industries, including building materials, plastic packaging, metal packaging, and chemicals manufacturing, and several were from the film and TV production industry.

Two areas within the mobile gaming space that saw a particularly noteworthy increase in investment activity during the quarter were virtual reality-based mobile games and mobile e-sports.

To help investors and game industry enterprises identify opportunities among China's sea of mobile game titles, developers, operators, and distribution channels, Marbridge has developed the Chinese Mobile Gaming Industry Matrix. The Q2 2016 edition of the Matrix provides details, in Excel (read-only) format, on:

Leading Mobile Game Companies (470)

• Listing Status (public, to list, private)
• Location (city in which operator/developer is headquartered)
• Company Homepage URL
• Company Contact Phone Number
• Experience in Overseas Game Publishing (specific examples available for ~8% of companies)
• Games Operated/Developed (with top grossing games highlighted)

Top Mobile Games (1,190)

• Game Environment (Android, iOS, WP)
• Game Type
• Game Dates (expected release, beta test, commercial launch)
• Game Source (self-developed vs. licensed)
• Revenue Model (pay-to-play vs. in-game items)
• Game Operation Statistics (DAU, monthly revenue, cumulative downloads - as available)
• Game Homepage URL

China's Top Mobile App/Game Distribution Platforms (38)

• Platform Operator Name
• Investment Received (available for ~35% of platforms)
• Number of Apps Hosted (available for ~35% of platforms; dates vary)
• User Base (available for ~65% of platforms; dates vary)
• Cumulative or Daily App Downloads (available for ~40% of platforms; dates vary)
• Revenue Share Ratio with Developers (available for ~60% of platforms)
• Business Model (available for ~25% of platforms)

Industry News Summaries - Q2 2016

• M&A and Internal Investment Deals (28 items)
• Partnerships (8 items)

Regulatory Announcements - Q2 2016

• Overview / Impact
• Announcement Date
• Implementation Date

The Chinese Mobile Gaming Industry Matrix is available either for one-off purchase or on a subscription basis with quarterly updates.