Video Game Industry Analysis Essay

industry covers services and platforms with a vast variety of focal markets. The portion of the

Today the three biggest game companies are Xbox, Playstation and Nintendo. The reason they are

The network effects in the video game industry are derived from the console system that is sold to consumers. If a company is able to increase penetration in this arena, though at-cost/ below-cost pricing or pull created through the development of desirable content, it can potentially lock in the added value of the video games sold for the system. Which is to say, the console locks-in the network effects in the industry and the games serve to reap the profits. The video games, however, may present something of a challenge in that they can be somewhat easily replicated by competitors. Nintendo used an encrypted chip system to reduce this possibility.

Regarding Industry: What is the current state of the industry? What is the potential future growth for that industry?

The Intensity of Rivalry among Competitors in an Industry (High): Equally balanced competitors exist within the industry such as BCF and KMD; these firms also face competition from retailers and wholesalers. The growth of the industry is relatively agile in both financial and technological aspects. The intensity or rivalry is further accentuated by relatively high storage and fixed rental costs, extensive product differentiation and minimal switching costs.

To achieve a distinction, I will be exploring the future of the gaming industry on each of the various platforms.

Bargaining Power of Buyers: The bargaining power of buyers is high in the department store retail industry. The volume of buyers is high, and buyers are very price sensitive in this industry. The products are not highly differentiated, and there are numerous stores that offer the same, or similar, products, giving buyers the opportunity to search for the lowest prices and information. The industry has substitutes available in the form of specialty, differentiated products and stores. This increases the power of buyers,

Bargaining power of buyers is medium-high because of the low switching costs and wider spectrum of similar products selling at competitive prices due to the influence of developing countries

Intensity of Rivalry Among Competitors: In the video game industry, this is a very strong force. For years in the industry no one company could hold the most popular console for more than one consecutive generation. The rivalry among competitors is very strong. Each holds its own powerful brand identity, and Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo all want to be leaders in the industry. They each may have their different approaches

The consumer video game systems offer an exciting opportunity to discuss and analyze the design of technology based on the strategy of each of the players within the industry. We will focus our analysis on the next generation of video consoles: Nintendo’s Wii, Microsoft’s Xbox 360 and Sony PlayStation 3 (PS3).

Global Video Game Console Industries must try to maintain a sustainable competitive advantage through innovation such as creating an upgraded version of the game every year or increase their on and off line presence to better satisfy their customers. There are many competitors in the Video Game industry that include PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Wii. These gaming consoles compete in terms of price, durability and loyalty. With Intensity Rivalry being a major determinant of competitiveness, video game companies work towards dominating the industry as well as gaining the major part of the industry profit pool. (Blackwell, 2002)

Bargaining power of suppliers. Suppliers have the ability to leverage, control, and negotiate the cost of their products (Hill et al., 2015, p. 56). In the case of the suppliers of the office supplies industry, more so for Staples, the bargaining power is weak and is considered to be low. The reason for its power being weak is a result of large companies having several suppliers that will easily compete against each other to provide the lowest cost of products.

3. What are the key success factors in the video gaming industry today? Are these the same as in the past?

All these developments have created a new type of market. The video games industry has changed dramatically, from a teenage boy playing in front of the TV to a business man or woman playing on a smart phone, blackberry or tablet. Video games are socially accepted as an entertainment tool and has being viewed positively.

The video game console industry is a very competitive segment. This segment requires a keen eye on product development as well as strategic product marketing and a rather large logistics arm to ensure rapid distribution to targeted areas. Video game industry in the US, which is hugely driven by retail sales of software and hardware, registered revenues of USD ~ million in CY'2012. Even so with the advent of new video game players in the industry, the revenues decreased by 11.7% compared to