The Daily Dose

A new report issued today by the International Data Corporation (IDC) and App Annie sheds some light on how portable — and in particular mobile — gaming is rising in terms of spending worldwide.

The report shows that gamers spent more than four times as much money on Google Play smartphone and tablet games in the fourth quarter of 2013 as they did a year earlier, while the revenue brought in by games on iOS App Store more than doubled over the same period. In terms of absolute value though, iOS game revenue continues to lead that on Google Play “by a wide margin,” the report notes.

“While consumers have traditionally spent more on games versus other types of apps, more than 75 percent of combined iOS & Google Play consumer app spending in 4Q 2013 came from games,” says App Annie CEO Bertrand Schmitt. He notes that it is a “significant increase” compared to the fourth quarter of 2012, proving the popularity of mobile gaming.

According to the report, Candy Crush and Puzzle & Dragons were the big winners across both dominant smartphone platforms for the full year of 2013. These were the top three grossing games, listed by platform:

• iOS App Store: Clash of Clans, Puzzle & Dragons, Candy Crush Saga
• Google Play: Puzzle & Dragons, Candy Crush Saga, Monster Taming for Kakao

Meanwhile, spending on gaming-optimized handheld platforms, typified by Nintendo’s 3DS and Sony’s PlayStation Vita, rose about nine percent between 4Q12 and 4Q13.

In particular, spending on games in Asia-Pacific increased across the board, with the region’s total portable game spending outpacing that of any other major global region last year.

Lewis Ward, the research director of gaming at IDC, says: “The Google Play ecosystem in particular benefitted from a big regional upswing in the installed base of smartphones and tablets in 2013, but rising living standards in Asia-Pacific countries generally also buoyed game spending.”

Headline image via Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images