The Hindu Business Line : Cybercafes rake in extra profits from game zones

CYBERCAFES are now looking to increase their revenue by up to 20 per cent by including gaming. Over the past six months, companies such as Reliance and Sify have begun investing in value-added services such as gaming and video conferencing. Currently, the gaming market in India is worth Rs 70 crore and is growing fast.

Reliance Web World outlets in 240 locations and 420 Sify iWay outlets across the country offer 3D games to subscribers.

Community or LAN-based games such as Counter Strike, NFS, FIFA, and WarCraft have also been installed to attract gamers.

Currently, 40 per cent of the total Reliance Web World revenues come from this service. The company expects this amount to increase by over 20 per cent a year.

Gaming will definitely generate more revenue for Internet parlours, says game publisher, Level Up, a Mumbai-based company.

It markets Ragnarok, a massively multi-player online role-playing game, which it claims is the top game in South-East Asia.

Organised players such as Reliance and Sify recently partnered with Level Up to offer Ragnarok.

"It is currently a transactional arrangement; we are considering a larger engagement," said a Reliance official.

India currently has a gaming population of over five lakh, and a potential of one million.

The rise in the number of gamers is also being tagged with the broadband penetration as the trend of online gaming catches on.

To target this market, game zones are cropping up within these Internet parlours, with specially designed accessories and dedicated gaming peripherals.

"A cybercafe in Mumbai saw 40 per cent increase in revenue after offering online games. Occupancy touched 100 per cent," said Mr Venkat Mallik, Managing Director, Level Up.

It will also bring in a new set of customers - gamers. The number of hours spent at Internet parlours will also increase. Currently, around 15 Internet parlours offer the option to surf and play games in the city.

Game zones charge a premium of 15-20 per cent over the market rates for broadband surfing. Following the licence route is what is slowing these organised players down.

Local cybercafes have an edge as they use readily available pirated game CDs. With such value-added services, Internet parlours will experience a makeover.

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page

Stories in this Section
No unions please, say employees of top BPOs

`BPO sector to chant productivity mantra' — No let-up in demand, best-of-breed players to gain

Spare the knife to let the golden goose lay on

Ariba expands India operations

IPE spells networking success

Broadband base swelling; after-sales services lagging

Cybercafes rake in extra profits from game zones