In a recent financial call, EA had an interesting prediction for the near-future of video game sales. By the time 2017 comes to a close, EA expects at least 40% of video game sales across all markets to be digital downloads.
Digital vs Physical is a hot-button item these days, as game publishers seek out ways to break away from traditional retail models and make more money. Meanwhile, matters like consumer preference and high-speed Internet availability have made the shift gradual.
That said, digital sales of full game downloads are steadily increasing. This is even happening in the face of uneven cost. Digital games, despite being subject to some pretty intense sales, are on average more expensive than physical games. This especially holds true because of things like secondhand markets, something publishers have been fighting against since rental stores in the 80’s.
While EA expects that 40% number for video games overall, it doesn’t see the same numbers within its own library. This is due to games like FIFA selling particularly well in countries with less pervasive high-speed Internet access. So there’s another reason why physical sales are still important – international markets.
That said, EA’s digital sales accounted for 33% of overall game sales in the last fiscal year, an increase from the previous year’s 29%. Battlefield 1 was a heavy contributor to this increase.
Source: Eurogamer