San Diego, CA -- May 9, 2001

A new research report from DFC Intelligence forecasts that 95 million people worldwide are expected to be playing online games by the year 2005. Furthermore, online games are likely to be a major driver for the consumer adoption of broadband services. However, what is more uncertain is how much revenue will be generated from online games. According to David Cole, president of DFC Intelligence and one of the report’s authors, "online games should garner significant usage over the next few years. The major question mark is whether individual companies will be able to monetize that usage."

The report features 10 different scenarios for online game revenue growth. "There is plenty of opportunity for money to be made in this space," said Cole. "However, it is uncertain whether the industry as a whole will be able to capitalize on this opportunity."

The report stresses that online games are a product category where consumers should eventually spend substantial sums of money. Online games are also a reason for consumers to subscribe to broadband services. "People will pay for games, and online games are likely to be a key reason that many consumers pay extra for a high-bandwidth service," said Cole.

However, the report also stresses that the online game market is still very much in its infancy. Right now, most companies are losing money in the online game space. Nevertheless, there are already some major online game success stories. According to Jessica Mulligan, one of the report’s authors, "online games have been around for years, but now it looks like some of the online games currently on the market are going to generate well over $300 million in lifetime revenues. With high profit margins, these games will be extremely lucrative for their developers."

The 300 page report, The Online Game Market 2001, provides a complete market overview. Issues covered include the history of online games, business models, operating costs, technology considerations, online distribution, advertising, game genres, consumer types, playing online via video game console systems, and detailed company profiles. DFC Intelligence is a research firm focused on interactive and digital entertainment. For more information contact DFC at 858-780-9680 or go to the DFC web site at www.dfcint.com.