Physical games sales were down 40% year-over-year to £111.7 million, while digital downloads dropped 23% to £236.9 million, according to figures released by the Entertainment Retailers Association (ERA).
“It was a tough first half for the games business with a lack of heavy-hitting releases, but we are optimistic for a strong second half, the traditional time for blockbuster releases,” said ERA CEO Kim Bayley.
Nevertheless, game sales during the first six months of the year were greater than the combined total of music and video sales.
Music sales, which combined vinyl, CD and downloads, but excluded streaming, rose 7.9% year-over-year to £163.8 million.
Video sales, which included physical, electronic sell-through and video on demand, but excluded streaming services such as Netflix and Amazon Prime Video, rose 5.4% to £213.7 million.
“This is a striking result for music, driven most notably by Taylor Swift and Record Store Day,” Bayley said. “It was clear back in April the impact they have had on the vinyl sector, but they seem to have lifted the market as a whole too.”
Annual UK video game sales fell behind film revenues last year for the first time since 2012, according to the ERA.
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Source: https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/uk-video-game-sales-dropped-nearly-30-in-the-first-half-of-2024/
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