PricewaterhouseCoopers is about to release a new industry report titled "Global Entertainment and Media Outlook: 2008-2012". The overall video game industry is expected to grow 10.3% annually but console games will continue to dominate sales which will grow at a healthy 6.9% per year. Online games are predicted to see the highest annual growth rate of 16.9% but will still have a way to go to catch up to console sales. Video game advertising, a relatively new entry, is also predicted to have strong growth at 16.7% annually. PC games will continue to be the industry laggard with an expectation of decreased sales between now and 2012. They are predicting an annual growth rate of negative 1.2%. This news doesn"t bode well for hard-core PC gamers as this will likely lead to a reduced investment in quality titles.
Read the extended article for actual sales figures and predictions of 2012.
Overall video game industry:
2007: $41.9 billion --> 2012: $68.3 billion
Console games:
2007: $24.9 billion --> 2012: $34.7 billion
Online games:
2007: $6.6 billion --> 2012: $14.4 billion
Video game advertising:
2007: $1 billion --> 2012: $2.3 billion
PC games:
2007: $3.8 billion --> 2012: $3.6 billion