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While obtaining earnings reports as well as earning expectations reports in the console and PC sides of the video game industry can be fairly easy, finding similar documents for coin-op amusement always proves to be a difficult task. Fortunately we have Global Industry Analysts, Inc. weighing in on coin-op for the US and Germany and for the most part, they see a 
positive outlook for the industry with the way being led by prize giving redemption machine (cranes and their many variations which vend a prize if the player wins the game), particularly in Germany. I’m not sure why only those two countries were picked for the report, obviously if you were to expand the outlook we’d see even larger numbers. They are however predicting a decline in video-only in Germany, which may have something to do with a new “Gaming Ordinance” there. I would normally say that all it would take for the trend to be reversed is to have the right games come along – historically we’ve seen how one game can change everything or how a number of excellent games can provide momentum – but when the lawmakers set their sights on arcades then the results are often negative for growth. That is generally relegated to a local level and not a national one. At least Skill With Prize games are still OK there, such games will certainly continue to see strong growth in the US and elsewhere. Either way it’s $10.5 billion more that the industry will be earning than some would like to give it credit for.
If you want to get your hands on the full 153 page report, get ready to pony up some cash. The report itself gets into many more details than our overview here but at nearly $3950, your need for such a report will have to be bigger than your wallet.
[Via Highway Games]
I think these numbers are inflated. We have to get through the worldwide economic turmoil over the next five years.
Ultimately, the “skill/luck prize” games don’t really constitute arcade games anymore, as they dominate most arcades, and for all intents and purposes are gambling devices for kids. Historically, such devices were heavily restricted at one point, and one day they might be restricted again. Remember, pinball was banned in Chicago and NYC for decades because it was considered a gambling device.
I think once true arcade games that do not have a payout/prize become as popular, or more popular than the payout/prize games, then we can say that there’s some movement in the arcade market.
We would have to purchase a report to find out how they came to that conclusion but I certainly wouldn’t shell out that much for a report. That would pay for any IT game or at least most of a Pac-Man Battle Royale. I am curious to look at it though, see what information they have.
I would have believed 1.5 billion in the U.S. by 2015…