More and more people in the Gulf countries are getting hooked on to gaming, if the numbers are anything to go by.

The GCC gaming market is expected to hit $821 million by 2021, up from $693 million in 2017, according to a new study.

The mobile gaming segment in the GCC dominates the region’s gaming market when it comes to revenue and penetration according to the study titled Skin in the Game by Strategy& Middle East, which is part of the PwC network.

“Global games devised by international developers have so far dominated this regional market. This makes it a particularly attractive proposition for operators in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region, where more than half the population is under 25 years of age and there is a strong opportunity to create localized gaming content”, Hicham Fadel, Partner with Strategy& Middle East said.

Industry data shows that globally, the gaming industry is worth $129 billion a year, which is bigger than the annual revenue of worldwide box office, annual music streaming and album sales, and major sports leagues all put together. The number of gamers worldwide is close to 2.5 billion.

According to the report, GCC telecom operators who successfully enter the gaming industry would improve their brand positioning and increase loyalty of their customers. 

Saudi Arabia is expected to have expanded rapidly and have become the largest gaming market in the region from 2019 onwards, while the UAE was the largest regional market in 2018, the report added.

The top mobile games played in the GCC today are PUBG Mobile, Intikam Al Salatin, Fortnite, and Rise of Kingdoms. Regional players such as gaming studio Falafel Games and Arabic mobile games publisher Tamatem Games have started to emerge through building on their culturally relevant content, the study said.

(Writing by Gerard Aoun; editing by Seban Scaria)

 (gerard.aoun@refinitiv.com)

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