Smartphones remain the device of choice for gamers in Saudi Arabia, with nearly three quarters of users opting for the platform that offers convenience and portability, a study has found.
Around 73 per cent of gamers in the kingdom use smartphones, holding a significant advantage over other devices, the UK-based research firm YouGov said in a report on Wednesday.
Game consoles, which include the likes of the Microsoft Xbox, Sony PlayStation and Nintendo Switch, were second with 34 per cent, it said. Desktops and laptops followed with 33 per cent, and high-end gaming PCs with 14 per cent. Tablets also remain popular with about 25 per cent.
"Although mobile devices have opened the gates to casual gaming in a big way, the likes of Xbox and PlayStation continue to appeal to gaming enthusiasts with a third of weekly gamers using dedicated gaming consoles to play video games. Men are more likely than women to say this," YouGov analysts said.
This has made gaming the sixth biggest online activity, tied with watching non-live TV, YouGov said.
Interacting on social media remains the top online activity, with 41 per cent of those surveyed engaged in it, YouGov said.
This is followed by live content, non-live content such as those on YouTube, streaming video such as those on Netflix and Amazon Prime, and others such as surfing the web or checking emails, the study said.
Gaming has become big business globally, gaining traction during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, with New-Age technology providing both an opportunity to reach a wider audience and develop new titles to cater to consumer demand.
Saudi Arabia plans to develop 30 games and create about 40,000 jobs by 2030, as part of its National Gaming and Esports Strategy.
The programme, unveiled by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in September, outlines a comprehensive investment programme for the industry and has the ultimate goal of making the kingdom a global gaming centre by 2030.
Riyadh also created the Saudi Esports Federation to hasten the industry's development. Its president, Prince Faisal bin Bandar, was appointed vice president of the Global Esports Federation in December.
Last month, the kingdom began hosting Gamers8, organised by the federation and one of the world’s largest gaming festivals, and Saudi residents have a positive perception of the event, data from YouGov shows.
About two-thirds of respondents agree with the statement: “Gamers8 will strengthen the kingdom's standing as future global hub for the gaming industry," it said.
Saudi Arabia's gaming industry also received a boost with new funding worth $488 million from the Saudi Esports Federation, the National Development Fund and the Social Development Bank, it was announced at the Leap technology conference in Riyadh in February.
Revenue in the global gaming market is projected to hit $212.4 billion by 2026, with mobile platforms continuing to lead the growth, market data platform Newzoo said last week in its August market update.
Meanwhile, the number of gaming start-ups in Saudi Arabia almost doubled to 24 in 2022, from 13 in the previous year, driven by incubation programmes, a report by game developer support system Nine66 said in December.
Gaming in Saudi Arabia also surpasses other online activities such as watching live streamed video content online, listening to radio, podcasts, reading a newspaper or book, or streaming music, the study showed.
On how much time is spent on gaming each week, the biggest proportion, or 22 per cent, of Saudi residents said they spend about three to six hours, followed by a fifth that spend two hours, YouGov said.
The adoption of virtual reality headsets remains low, with only 9 per cent of weekly gamers using these devices during their gaming sessions, despite the gaming potential of VR and the steady rise of the metaverse, the study showed.
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Aged just 11, Khulood Al Najjar’s daughter, Nora, bravely attempted to fight off Philip Spence. Her finger was injured when she put her hand in between the claw hammer and her mother’s head.
As a vital witness, she was forced to relive the ordeal by police who needed to identify the attacker and ensure he was found guilty.
Now aged 16, Nora has decided she wants to dedicate her career to helping other victims of crime.
“It was very horrible for her. She saw her mum, dying, just next to her eyes. But now she just wants to go forward,” said Khulood, speaking about how her eldest daughter was dealing with the trauma of the incident five years ago. “She is saying, 'mama, I want to be a lawyer, I want to help people achieve justice'.”
Khulood’s youngest daughter, Fatima, was seven at the time of the attack and attempted to help paramedics responding to the incident.
“Now she wants to be a maxillofacial doctor,” Khulood said. “She said to me ‘it is because a maxillofacial doctor returned your face, mama’. Now she wants to help people see themselves in the mirror again.”
Khulood’s son, Saeed, was nine in 2014 and slept through the attack. While he did not witness the trauma, this made it more difficult for him to understand what had happened. He has ambitions to become an engineer.
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This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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