Demand for retro gaming appears to be at an all-time high. Within the past few months, promotions for a major film based on classic arcade game characters and a host of old school gaming festivals around the country have illustrated the current state of the nostalgic gaming niche. Put simply, the market potential offered by vintage video games is nearly limitless, and the rapid adoption of smartphones makes meeting this potential more accessible than ever before. WRIT Media Group, Inc. (OTCQB: WRIT), through wholly-owned subsidiary Retro Infinity, Inc., says it plans to capitalize on this demand by bringing some of the most popular retro gaming titles of all time straight to consumers’ pockets.
“The mobile gaming industry size is projected to be over $20 billion by 2016, and retro gaming is a huge part of that,” Eric Mitchell, chief executive officer of WRIT, stated in a press release dated March 18, 2015. “Our company… has the ability to generate substantial revenue over the next 6-12 months based on our business model which is inexpensively licensing video game titles and quickly getting them into the marketplace on one of the biggest electronic platforms available right now, which is the smartphone.”
By targeting the smartphone app market, WRIT could position itself to promote growth moving forward. According to a report by Bluecloud Solutions, mobile app usage grew by more than 75 percent in 2014, with the average U.S. consumer downloading 8.8 apps per month. Traditionally, developing gaming apps is an extremely costly venture. Estimates vary wildly depending on the type of gaming title being produced, but it’s not uncommon for mobile games to exceed $100,000 in production costs. By licensing retro gaming titles and utilizing an emulation software, WRIT would be able to access the booming mobile gaming industry without the large budgetary and scheduling considerations required to produce original content.
The company’s website says its library of classic gaming titles, which builds on the Amiga, Atari and MS-DOS brands, is available for purchase through an online point-of-sale platform. Additionally, WRIT says it will provide access to its licensed titles through an app for popular smartphone operating systems, including Android and iOS. Unlike most game developers, WRIT could minimize risk by providing proven titles to a market that is hungry for retro options. This predictability has the potential to provide a competitive advantage the company would need to capitalize on specific market demand.
For more information about the company, visit www.writmediagroup.com
Update 9/21/15: WRIT Media Group has started a Kickstarter campaign to launch the Retro Infinity Player. For more details, visit: http://dtn.fm/writ-media-kickstarter
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