China Mobile Game Booming

　　Gaming is no longer confined to a desktop¹ computer, with many enthusiasts² now using tablets and smartphones to play while on the move.

 

　　In China, the mobile games market is booming.

 

　　Over the next few years, experts predict the industry will be worth billions of dollars.

 

　　Li Dong has more.

 

　　Gaming on the go is really catching³ on. China is tapping into that hunger, with developers busy designing and producing the latest games to download and enjoy.

 

　　According to a report by research firm Niko Partners, at the end of 2012, the number of mobile gamers outnumbered that of PC gamers in China - reaching 192 million users.

 

　　Market revenue stood at around 600 million US dollars in 2011. The Niko Partners report predicts that will run into billions of dollars over the next few years.

 

　　And experts do not see a point of saturation⁴ any time soon, as the smartphone has only grabbed 50 per cent of the mobile phone market share so far.

 

　　Yodo1 is a games company based in Beijing that works with Western developers to bring their titles to the Chinese market.

 

　　The company's chief executive officer, Henry Fong, says staff are working at full throttle⁵.

 

　　"I think there's been so much coverage⁶ and the growth of the market both in terms of unit shipments as well as the revenue growth has been so significant that mobile games developers really can't ignore the Chinese market."

 

　　Companies like Yodo1 are crucial for Western developers in China.

 

　　The complexities⁷ of the market mean local advice is needed, to comply with the intricate mechanisms⁸ of distribution and sales of mobile games.

 

　　In Western markets developers only have to deal with Apple's app store for iOS, and Google Play and Amazon for Android.

 

　　But in China there are over 500 different app stores, over a dozen different payment methods and hundreds of different promotional channels in the market.

 

　　The main reason for this is the rapid growth of mobile handsets.

 

　　From fewer than 100 (m) million in 2011 to 430 (m) million at the end of 2012, mobile handset sales are expected to reach 500 (m) million units at the end of 2013, double the number of the Unites States.

 

　　This boom has been caused by the fall of handset prices, which have gone from a minimum of 326 US dollars to 163 US dollars.

 

　　Leading companies like Gameloft, headquartered in Paris, are rapidly expanding their operations on Chinese soil and increasing revenues.

 

　　Gameloft arrived in Beijing in 2003, and after some turbulence⁹ during the first few years, it is now settled in and is chasing opportunities.

 

　　It already has three studios in China and has recently signed an agreement with Tencent - one of China's biggest web companies - to distribute a version of the game "Ice Age Village 3" on the Tencent Mobile QQ Game Platform, with 350 (m) million users and counting.

 

　　Eric Tan is the company's manager in China.

 

　　"Compared to the other entertainment industries, the mobile gaming industry is growing at exponential rate. Right now, both online gaming, mobile gaming, we have seen cases where the revenues is greater than other media such as movies, TVs and music," he says.

 

　　China is not only breeding users, but game engineers as well, who are catching up with the level of Western artists and producing global hits. The Chinese mobile game market is a gold mine that has yet to mature.

 

　　As the market consolidates¹⁰, it will get easier for game studios to be able to integrate into local app-stores and payment methods, while mobile gamers are expected to get used to paying for content.

 

　　For CRI, I am Li Dong.

1 desktop   

n.桌面管理系统程序；台式

参考例句：

• My computer is a desktop computer of excellent quality.我的计算机是品质卓越的台式计算机。
• Do you know which one is better,a laptop or a desktop?你知道哪一种更好，笔记本还是台式机？

2 enthusiasts   

n.热心人，热衷者( enthusiast的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• A group of enthusiasts have undertaken the reconstruction of a steam locomotive. 一群火车迷已担负起重造蒸汽机车的任务。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Now a group of enthusiasts are going to have the plane restored. 一群热心人计划修复这架飞机。 来自新概念英语第二册

3 catching   

adj.易传染的，有魅力的，迷人的，接住

参考例句：

• There are those who think eczema is catching.有人就是认为湿疹会传染。
• Enthusiasm is very catching.热情非常富有感染力。

4 saturation   

n.饱和(状态)；浸透

参考例句：

• The company's sales are now close to saturation in many western countries.这家公司的产品销售量在许多西方国家已接近饱和。
• Road traffic has reached saturation point.公路交通已达到饱和点。

5 throttle   

n.节流阀，节气阀，喉咙；v.扼喉咙，使窒息，压

参考例句：

• These government restrictions are going to throttle our trade.这些政府的限制将要扼杀我们的贸易。
• High tariffs throttle trade between countries.高的关税抑制了国与国之间的贸易。

6 coverage   

n.报导，保险范围，保险额，范围，覆盖

参考例句：

• There's little coverage of foreign news in the newspaper.报纸上几乎没有国外新闻报道。
• This is an insurance policy with extensive coverage.这是一项承保范围广泛的保险。

7 complexities   

复杂性(complexity的名词复数)； 复杂的事物

参考例句：

• The complexities of life bothered him. 生活的复杂使他困惑。
• The complexities of life bothered me. 生活的杂乱事儿使我心烦。

8 mechanisms   

n.机械( mechanism的名词复数 )；机械装置；[生物学] 机制；机械作用

参考例句：

• The research will provide direct insight into molecular mechanisms. 这项研究将使人能够直接地了解分子的机理。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He explained how the two mechanisms worked. 他解释这两台机械装置是如何工作的。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 turbulence   

n.喧嚣，狂暴，骚乱，湍流

参考例句：

• The turbulence caused the plane to turn over.空气的激流导致飞机翻转。
• The world advances amidst turbulence.世界在动荡中前进。

10 consolidates   

巩固

参考例句：

• We've made a good start, now it's time to consolidate. 我们有了一个良好的开端，现在应该加以巩固。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Yuan Shih-k'ai, a would-be Oriental Bonaparte, now attempted to consolidate his power. 当时，一度可能成为东方波拿巴的袁世凯试图巩固他的权力。 来自英汉非文学 - 新闻报道