Revenues generated from online gaming in China alone are expected to reach a mind-boggling $2.67 billion in 2010!

With the continually growing popularity of online games in China comes a higher addiction rate and apparently, this is a serious problem that the Chinese government is working on curbing sooner rather than later. One of the measures put in place is real-name registrations. Now Chinese players who wish to gamble online must give their real names when registering accounts. Additionally, a mandatory anti-addiction system has been put in place. This system is to be installed in the online gaming software. How it works is still unclear but the Chinese Daily Newspaper wrote an article about the system. Despite any obstacles, online gaming continues to grow in China. In 2008, gaming revenues were reported at $1.86 billion. Extremely popular on the playing field are games like World of WarCraft but surprisingly online and casual games are running neck and neck with them so much so that local web companies are looking at attracting venture capital.

It was said that in-game advertising is a hot ticket for generating revenue. The proof is in the pudding. Companies like Shanda, one of China’s online gaming gurus, are paying special attention to in-game advertising. Demographic changes are an especially important factor to take note of, with female gamers and persons outside urban areas adding to the overall count. The more, the merrier, I always say, and that adage seems to be bearing fruit. It will be interesting to see what effects this has on Chinese society in the years to come.

The majority of Chinese gamers play online games in communal areas such as internet cafes, a new study has found.

The study, commissioned by polling group Research and Market, found that gamers were more likely to play online games in public areas like internet cafes. The study questioned gamers from 507 internet cafes nationwide.

The research found that, while many gamers in large cities - like Beijing or Shanghai - often had home computers with internet access, many players preferred to game in communal areas like internet cafes. The majority of gamers said that socialising was their main motivation for gaming in public areas.

The report found that, in rural areas and smaller cities, many gamers relied on these cafes for their internet access. It was discovered that many online gamers in these areas did not have internet connections at home.

The report states that in 2008, internet cafe gamers generated 40 per cent of the $2.5 billion global industry. There are an estimated 21.9 million PCs in internet cafes across China and approximately 185,000 internet cafes nationwide. It is thought that 71,000 of these are unlicensed by the Chinese regulatory authorities.