Middle East is emerging games market, says Livingstone

Speaking at what is supposedly the Middle East’s first gaming conference, GAMES08, in Dubai this week, Eidos boss Ian Livingstone said the region is becoming important to the industry because of the obvious thing: money.

“The Middle East is definitely an emerging market for the gaming industry,” he said.

“People here have a large amount of disposable income making them ideal consumers. Gaming is as important culturally as movies and music.”

Livingstone added that the market in the region is estimated at $750 million, a figure agreed by Sony.

“We estimate the market here to be currently at... $550 million for hardware, $150 million for software and $50 million for accessories,” said Tim Stokes, marketing head for Sony PlayStation Sony Gulf.

More on Xpress. Thanks, MaxConsole.