News

Declining Gaming Revenues Bring Middle East Opportunities

The global gaming industry faces plenty of challenges, but the Middle East’s investments have resulted in growth opportunities and regional resilience.

Published

3 years ago

February 7, 2024

Nour Nasir

declining gaming revenues bring middle east opportunities

Unsplash

Ask a casual observer about the state of the gaming industry, and they’ll likely tell you that it’s in fine health. After all, this vast landscape of big-studio and indie developers, consoles, and cloud-based services rakes in billions each year.

However, despite headline-grabbing news such as Microsoft’s recent $75 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard, a closer examination reveals several underlying challenges. Despite initial surges during the pandemic, gaming usage and revenues have declined due to factors like inflation. Business Insider recently reported a 2.3% decrease in US gaming revenue in 2023 compared to the previous year, signaling a shift in consumer behavior that includes reduced gaming hours per week.

Analyst Matthew Ball’s assessment of the industry’s state highlights a concerning trend of layoffs, with a significant increase observed in 2024. Substantial cuts within Microsoft Gaming have impacted approximately 8% of its workforce. Meanwhile, key departures from Blizzard add to the industry’s instability.

While these layoffs have global implications, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region presents a unique opportunity amidst the industry’s challenges. With a rapidly growing gaming market and substantial government investments, countries like Saudi Arabia and the UAE are aiming to establish themselves as global hubs.

Also Read: Top 10 Best Video Games Set In The Middle East

Saudi Arabia’s Savvy Games Group, backed by a $38 billion investment from PIF, seeks to bolster the Kingdom’s gaming industry and emerge as a global leader. Similarly, the UAE’s ambitious Dubai Program for 2033 aims to position Dubai among the top 10 cities in the gaming industry by boosting its digital economy and GDP.

These initiatives could offer insulation against the industry’s turbulence while creating growth opportunities for regional gaming companies. By diversifying their economies and investing in long-term development, Middle Eastern countries are demonstrating a strategic approach distinct from the short-term profit-driven motives seen elsewhere in the industry.

News

Samsung And Spotify Offer Free Premium Deal In MENA

Nearly seven in ten streams in the region come from 18-to-34-year-olds — the audience Samsung is hoping to entice into its ecosystem.

Published

6 days ago

August 7, 2026

Nour Nasir

Samsung

Samsung has announced a partnership with Spotify spanning the Middle East, North Africa, and Türkiye, bundling Spotify Premium with select devices across its ecosystem. The headline offer — up to four months of Premium for free — is a first for the region.

Customers in Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Türkiye who buy any OLED or 98-inch television, or any Galaxy S or Z series mobile device, get four months of Spotify Premium. The offer, tiered by market and device, is available at retail and on Samsung.com, and redeemed through the Samsung Promotion and Samsung Members apps.

For Samsung, the strategy is less about free music than about lock-in. The Korean tech giant’s pitch is continuity: a track starts on a Galaxy smartphone through Galaxy Buds on the commute, moves to a Samsung TV and soundbar in the living room, and stays controllable from a Galaxy Watch. The more seamlessly music travels between those devices, the harder it becomes to swap any one of them for a rival’s.

“Technology should bring people closer to the things they love, and few things connect people the way music does,” said Omar Saheb, Regional VP of Marketing and Online Business at Samsung Electronics MENA. The partnership, he added, gives customers “a genuine reason to choose Samsung for the experience, not only the product”.

Also Read: Shokz OpenFit Pro Review: Open-Ear Audio Finally Grows Up

For subscribers, Premium brings the usual package: ad-free listening, offline downloads, richer audio quality on Galaxy Buds and Samsung sound devices, and Jam, which lets friends build a shared queue.

“At Spotify, we are always working to make every listening moment feel more personal, meaningful, and worth it,” said Rami Jamal, Head of Partnerships at Spotify for South Asia, Middle East, and Africa.

The demographics go a long way to explaining the strategy. Across MENA, Türkiye, and Pakistan, nearly seven in ten Spotify streams come from listeners aged 18 to 34, according to the company — precisely the audience Samsung wants inside its hardware ecosystem before buying habits harden.