August

Akatsuki FY3/24 3rd Quarter Consolidated Financial Results

Akatsuki’s financial performance for the third quarter of the fiscal year ending March 2024 reflects a period of strategic transition characterized by flat year-over-year consolidated sales of 5.27 billion yen and an operating loss.

• Akatsuki reported flat year-over-year consolidated sales of 5.27 billion yen for Q3 FY3/24, resulting in an operating loss due to a 22.8% increase in operating expenses.
• The company is executing a long-term growth strategy involving a 20 billion yen investment in global-scale gaming projects and 2 billion yen in the comics sector.
• Operating losses are driven by aggressive promotional spending and development costs for the launch of 'Atelier Resleriana' and the upcoming 3D action RPG 'Tribe Nine'.

Discord Cuts 17% of Workforce

Discord announced a significant reduction in its global workforce in January 2024, cutting approximately 17% of its staff, which equates to roughly 170 employees.

• Discord has laid off 17% of its global workforce, affecting approximately 170 employees.
• CEO Jason Citron attributed the layoffs to rapid expansion, noting that the company's staff grew 5x since 2020, which led to project bloat and operational inefficiency.
• This reduction follows a smaller round of layoffs in August 2023, which saw the company cut approximately 4% of its staff.

Marketing Insights into Global Mobile Games & Minigames in 2024

The analysis outlines global mobile game advertising trends for 2024, drawing on a database of over 1.6 billion ad creatives from more than 70 countries and 80 media channels, including Facebook, TikTok, YouTube, Unity, and WeChat.

• The mobile game advertising market is shifting toward higher creative turnover, with the proportion of advertisers releasing new creatives rising to 55% in the second half of 2024 and new creatives accounting for 65% of total ad volume.
• WeChat minigames have become a significant market force, reaching RMB 60 billion in 2023 with a user base averaging one hour of daily engagement, led primarily by RPG/SLG hybrid titles.
• Casino games saw over 10% year-over-year growth in advertising activity, while casual games experienced a 3% decline, and RPG and puzzle genres maintained stable market positions.

South East Asian Mobile Game Market Insights 2024

Mobile game downloads across Southeast Asia grew by 3.4% in the first half of 2024, reaching 4.2 billion installs, with Google Play accounting for 91% of the volume.

• Southeast Asia's mobile game market saw 4.2 billion installs in H1 2024, a 3.4% increase, while in-app purchase (IAP) revenue reached $1.16 billion, a 3.4% year-over-year rise but a 3% decline from the previous half-year.
• Indonesia is the region's largest market by volume, accounting for 41% of total downloads with 10% growth, while Thailand leads in profitability, contributing $400 million in IAP revenue.
• Google Play remains the dominant platform in the region, capturing 91% of total download volume and 57% of total IAP revenue.

Terminy Przekazywania Raportów Okresowych w 2024 Roku

The management board of 11 bit studios S.A. has established the official schedule for the publication of its periodic financial results throughout the 2024 calendar year.

• 11 bit studios S.A. will release its 2023 annual financial report on April 18, 2024.
• The company has scheduled its 2024 quarterly and semi-annual performance updates for May 23 (Q1), August 22 (H1), and November 14 (Q3).
• 11 bit studios S.A. will omit separate quarterly reports for Q4 2023 and Q2 2024, consolidating this data into annual and semi-annual filings.

2024 Financial and Fan Support Structures in Korean eSports

The analysis examines the financial scale of Korean e-sports organizations and the patterns of fan support, drawing on a longitudinal budget survey (2015-2023) and two 2024 public opinion polls conducted across South Korea.

• Korean e-sports team expenditures grew nearly five-fold between 2015 and 2023, rising from 22.1 billion won to 111.6 billion won.
• Market investment is accelerating, with total team spending increasing by 15.9% between 2022 and 2023 alone.
• Fan loyalty is highly concentrated, as T1 commands 78.2% of identified team supporters, while the runner-up Gen.G holds only 5.4%.

2024 E‑Sports Viewership and Engagement Trends in Korea

The analysis aims to map current e-sports viewership and engagement patterns among South Korean audiences, highlighting how consumption devices, platforms, and motivations shape the market and indicating the potential for offline event conversion.

• YouTube dominates the South Korean e-sports market with a 78.5% platform share, significantly outpacing competitors SOOP (14.1%) and CHZZK (7.2%).
• E-sports consumption is primarily mobile and desktop-driven, with PCs (38.2%) and mobile phones (35.9%) accounting for 74.1% of all viewing devices.
• Engagement is frequent and consistent, as 58.9% of viewers watch e-sports content at least once a week, with 20.4% watching 3–4 times weekly.

Study Report on African Video Games: Premier Results in Francophone Countries

The study investigates the emerging video-game ecosystem in West Africa, focusing on Senegal, Côte d’Ivoire and Cameroon, to assess current player demographics, awareness of locally produced titles, and the factors shaping market potential.

• Awareness of locally developed games is extremely low, with over 82% of gamers in Senegal, Côte d’Ivoire, and Cameroon reporting they have never heard of an African-produced title.
• Financial infrastructure is a major barrier to monetization, as approximately 51% of surveyed gamers lack a bank card to facilitate in-game purchases.
• The market is dominated by a young, mobile-first demographic, with 45% of players aged 19–25 and over 80% utilizing Android devices.

Guild Esports Renews With Subway for 2024

Guild Esports, a London-based, publicly traded esports organization, has officially renewed its partnership with the UK division of the quick-service restaurant chain Subway.

• Guild Esports has renewed its partnership with the UK division of Subway for an additional year, effective January 1, 2024.
• Under the renewed agreement, Subway will maintain front-of-shirt branding on all Guild Esports professional and academy team jerseys.
• The original partnership between Guild Esports and Subway was first established in March 2021 as a two-year deal.

Gfinity Sells Esports Division to Ingenuity Loop Limited

Gfinity has finalized the sale of its esports solutions division to Ingenuity Loop Limited, marking a definitive exit from the competitive gaming sector.

• Gfinity has sold its remaining esports solutions division assets to Ingenuity Loop Limited, finalizing its strategic pivot away from esports operations to focus on its media division.
• The deal includes a £15,000 ($16,200 USD) down payment to cover costs incurred by the division since August 2023 and grants Gfinity a 15% equity interest in Ingenuity Loop.
• Ingenuity Loop holds an option to buy out Gfinity’s 15% equity stake for £200,000 ($216,000 USD) in cash within the first 12 months of the deal's completion.

株式会社Aiming 第13期第3四半期四半期報告書

Aiming Inc. provides this quarterly report for the third quarter of the 13th fiscal year, covering the period from July 1, 2023, to September 30, 2023.

Millions of Germans Tune in to Esports

Esports has established itself as a significant media and participation phenomenon within Germany, experiencing substantial growth in both viewership and active engagement.

• Approximately 16 million Germans have watched esports tournaments, representing a growth of over 4 million viewers since 2020.
• Public awareness of esports in Germany has risen to 77 percent of the population, up from 71 percent in 2020.
• Active participation in esports has increased, with 23 percent of all German gamers—roughly 10 million people—having competed in tournaments or leagues, compared to 18 percent in 2020.