As numerous game developers turn their attention to expanding into overseas markets. In the global gaming landscape, compared to the highly mature and fiercely competitive markets of Europe, America, Japan, and South Korea, the Southeast Asian region is like an undeveloped "land of potential."
Located to the south of China, India, with its strong economic momentum, has entered the top five global economies, undoubtedly providing a unique "backyard" for game developers seeking overseas opportunities. What surprises does this treasure land hold? Let's explore its unique charm together!
About Indian Culture
India, as a top-tier emerging economy, is the largest country in South Asia. It has a population of over 1.3 billion, with 60% under the age of 35, possessing a huge consumer group and strong consumption potential.
India is a diverse country, influenced by early British colonization, mainly using Hindi and English as the main languages. Despite accent issues, the Westernized education model makes Indians' English expression quite natural and authentic. Additionally, India has over a hundred ethnic groups, each with its unique dialect.
India is the birthplace of yoga, and aside from yoga, singing and dancing are the most enjoyable leisure activities for Indians.
The Current State of India's Gaming Market
Under the influence of rapid economic growth, the Indian market has become one of the global focal points for the gaming industry. According to data from the Sensor Tower store, in March 2024, global mobile game downloads on the App Store and Google Play reached 4.29 billion, an increase of 8.2% year-over-year. India led with 739 million downloads, accounting for 17.2% of the global total, far surpassing the second and third-ranked United States and Brazil.
This phenomenon is thanks to the large local population and the increasing internet penetration and number of mobile users under the "Digital India" initiative, which also increases the demand for entertainment. Additionally, the Indian government's investment in high-speed mobile internet has made mobile entertainment increasingly popular among the Indian masses.
According to data from Niko Partners, by 2023, the revenue of India's gaming market is about $868 million, and it is expected to nearly double by 2027, with the number of gamers also expected to reach over 600 million.
Mobile games dominate the overall market, with nearly 96.8% of users experiencing games through mobile devices, and 31% of players are willing to pay for games. Indian mobile games include free games and are more affordable compared to other gaming platforms.
In the Indian gaming market, card games are very popular, such as Rummy and Teen Patti. Rummy is a skill and strategy game that has been popular even before the advent of mobile devices. Teen Patti is known as the Indian version of "Flash," a game leaning towards psychological speculation. Both games are equally popular and have a very broad audience.
Key Points for Launching in India
The significant increase in mobile users has gradually expanded the influence of advertising platforms like Google and Facebook in India. India has over 836 million internet users, second only to China globally. Among them, Facebook is their favorite social media platform, with Google, WhatsApp, and YouTube also being heavily used by Indians.
For developers and advertisers entering this market, it is crucial to familiarize themselves with local Google and Facebook advertising techniques.
1. Advertising Costs
Facebook advertising effectiveness and specific charges depend on various factors, with two main charging methods:
Average Cost Per Click (CPC)
Average Cost Per Thousand Impressions (CPM)
Google advertising costs vary by ad type.
Search ads: CPC about 20 rupees, CPM about 50 rupees. Choosing highly accurate keywords for search ads can bring more significant effects, and advertising costs will fluctuate with the quality of the ads.
Display ads: CPC about 5 rupees, CPM about 50 rupees. In India, Google display ads have a very high cost-performance ratio, but there are differences depending on the specific situation.
Shopping ads: The average annual e-commerce expenditure per person is about 10,000 rupees, and shopping ad costs are low but can bring higher benefits.
2. How to Effectively Manage Advertising Expenditure
Select precise keywords and regularly optimize: Deeply understand the industry's advertising situation, select high-conversion keywords, and regularly optimize and update keywords.
Refined and localized material copy: India is a diverse country, with over a hundred different dialects besides the official Hindi, so advertising materials can consider using different languages to summarize concisely.
Creative materials that grab attention: Divide material styles from the product's perspective and the audience's perspective.
Focus on the product's features, such as highlighting gameplay and features for game products.
From the audience's perspective, focus on the creativity's storytelling, playability, psychological appeals, and sentiments, producing rhythmic, exciting, and colorful video materials. For card game products, focus on various trigger Feature Game and big prize moments.
Narrow the audience range, precise positioning: Segment the audience based on user behavior habits and interest areas for precise targeting.
Reasonably allocate budget: Adjust budget allocation timely based on the performance of different keywords and audience groups.
Local Media Platforms in India
In India, besides the global mainstream media platforms, there are also some more localized advertising platforms.
SHAREit is a one-stop high-quality digital content and cross-platform high-speed resource sharing platform frequently used by local users. The platform has accumulated over 2.4 billion downloads, covering more than 200 countries and regions, and is known as a "national app" in markets such as Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and Russian-speaking regions.
Appnext is an independent application discovery platform under the Indian listed advertising platform Affle Group. The platform has established long-term close cooperation with globally renowned mobile manufacturers, mobile operators, and advertisers. It can recommend applications 7 billion times a day to global users, with over 500 million daily active users.
Conclusion
Overall, India's development still makes the local market a place full of huge opportunities for industries like gaming. Although opportunities come with various competitions and challenges, success in the Indian market is likely if the right direction is taken and effective strategies are implemented.
