Report: Non-Facebook Networks Form Bulk Of Social Gaming Revenue

Though Facebook seems like the 750-million-user gorilla in the social gaming space, a new report claims that other social networks combine to bring in more gaming revenue, a trend that's expected to continue into the near future. Social platform distributor Viximo's latest 'Beyond Facebook' Report [PDF link] uses information from Superdata Research to examine more than 750,000 transactions from over 150,000 users in early 2011 to determine that social gamers currently spend roughly $3.2 billion annually on non-Facebook networks, compared to just $1.3 billion spent on Facebook games. This revenue is mainly concentrated in Asian, European and South American markets where Facebook faces stiff competition from dominant, entrenched networks like Hyves (the Netherlands), Tuenti (Spain), VKontakte (Russia), StudiVZ (Germany), Yonja (Turkey) and Orkut (Latin America). Viximo, whose business is focused around distributing social titles in these emerging markets, claims the bulk of growth in social gaming over the next few years to come from these markets, especially areas like Russia, Brazil and Turkey. By 2014, this growth will help non-Facebook gaming revenue balloon to an estimated $7.6 billion, with Facebook gaming expected to represent $3.1 billion in revenue that year, according to claims made by Viximo. "With Facebook maturing and becoming a more costly investment, smaller, more focused platforms provide room for growth and diversification," the report reads. "This multiplicity of vibrant social networks creates a significant opportunity for social game developers willing to port their content to new networks and localize for non-English speaking regions."