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Korean online games market grew 20% in 2008

Game operators report year-on-year profit increases of up to 51 per cent

The online gaming market in South Korea grew more than 20 per cent in 2008 with top game operators reporting year-on-year revenue increases of up to 51 per cent, according to a report published by Pearl Research.

Furthermore, the sector has been left relatively unaffected by the worldwide economic downturn since its games are free-to-play and monetised through small-scale item transactions.

The top five game operators in the region throughout the year were NHN, Nexon, NCsoft, Neowiz and CJ Internet. Of this top five, leading operator NHN reported revenues up 51 per cent year-over-year while Neowiz sees increases of 21 per cent and NCsoft five per cent.

NCsoft's Aion and Lineage series were among the most played online titles, while Sudden Attack, FIFA Online 2 and World of Warcraft attracted similarly large numbers of users.

The popularity of online gaming in South Korea is fuelled by the high numbers of its households that own a PC. The country's install base represents one of the highest in the world.

Still, the market continues to face a number of threats, with intense domestic competition threatening publishers and smaller companies lacking support in the wake of rising development costs.