After a slight downturn that took gaming back to pre-COVID levels, the market is poised to begin a rebound that will add $5 billion in revenue, bringing total revenues to$47.1 billion by 2025, according to a TechSpot report citing the work of Jon Peddie, president of Jon Peddie Research.
Bright spots, like Sony’s PS5 consoles, are expected to push revenues higher. This holiday season, Sony expects to sell 10.5 million PS5 consoles, driven in part by the popularity of a PlayStation 5 model with a removable disc drive, Insider Gaming reports.
Other gaming tech, including televisions with built-in features to enhance the gaming experience, such as Variable Refresh Rate (VRR), Auto Low Latency Mode (ALLM) and support for 4K@120Hz–all supported as part of the HDMI 2.1b Specification, gaming monitors with those features and laptops, are expected to be in demand by holiday shoppers looking to enhance their gaming experience.
Even GPU sales, which suffered a downturn as manufacturers worked through surplus inventory, are expected to see resumed growth with the “return of normal seasonality” ushering in “a cautious slight upturn” in Q3 and Q4, according to a JPR forecast.
A significant factor contributing to this holiday season’s expected growth in gaming tech is the resolution of many of the supply chain issues stemming from the pandemic.
Resellers and retailers looking to maximize their holiday cheer should be preparing today to fill their shelves—both virtual and brick-and-mortar—with authentic, licensed HDMI products. As noted, the latest HDMI Specification enables gamers to experience the best that gaming has to offer on consoles and PCs, but there is a nasty Grinch who threatens the holiday joy of resellers, retailers and gamers alike.
Unlicensed HDMI counterfeit products are fraught with problems. For retailers and resellers, pirated HDMI products can lead to lost sales, inadequate inventory, higher product returns and dissatisfied customers. For consumers, they can raise safety concerns, perform less than optimally and even lead people to return perfectly fine system components, such as an expensive gaming TV or game console that appears not to function because of a poorly performing counterfeit cable.
Manufacturers and resellers failing to verify they are sourcing from licensed HDMI Adopters or their authorized resellers might lead to no product to sell as customs agents seize products, potentially leading to non-delivery penalties and even the loss of contracts. Resellers should demand suppliers provide only licensed products, even requiring them to make licensed products a contract term and asking suppliers to provide paperwork to validate certification.
If resellers and retailers suspect or encounter counterfeit products, they should immediately visit the HDMI Authenticate webpage at https://hdmi.org/resource/infringe and report them, the name of the manufacturer and how the product is infringing. HDMI Licensing Administrator, Inc. (HDMI LA) will investigate and work with customs and other government agencies to have them seized or otherwise removed from the market.
This holiday season is looking to be another in which gaming tech contributes to good cheer for consumers and retailers. Don’t let the Grinch of unlicensed HDMI products steal it.
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