Over 100 million PC’s have been sold in India, making it one of the more thriving computer markets out there. However, despite most of those units running with integrated graphics, only a small chunk of those PC’s are being used in terms of gaming. Chandrahas Panigrahi, director of AMD’s Channel and OEM, recently spoke at the company’s Future of Gaming conference in Goa, addressing how the company can change that around.
First off, Panigrahi touched on awareness, believing that a lot of gamers simply aren’t aware of the kind of power PC’s possess when it comes to gaming, particularly with the GPU and the performance it can deliver. Most users prefer to run a system as is without having to upgrade to a new card, creating a suboptimal experience in the process. Panigrahi says that AMD will soon launch a program that will effectively communicate to consumers the benefits of having a suitable video card, as well as the performance that comes with it.
Next up, user mentality came into play, with Panigrahi believing that mobile gamers could play a part in the process. ” If you look at it, mobidensity (mobile cellular subscribers per hundred inhabitants) is 65 to 70 percent (of the entire population of one billion Indians),” he said. “PC penetration is 7 to 9 percent. Right now, lots of gaming is on smartphones and tablets. Many of these gamers are graduating from casual to serious gaming. Even if it is 2 percent from a 65 percent mobidensity is a huge number but 2 percent or even 5 percent is a small number. That base is building up.
Social will also play a huge part with the PC push, as AMD wants to get India numbers right up there with South Korean and Chinese audiences – not an easy number to reach. ” In Korea, 85 percent are gamers because it’s source of livelihood. It’s not the case here. We’re working with key partners to build an ecosystem which helps to create social acceptance and source of livelihood. We’re in early stage discussions with key partners, like monitor manufacturers, HDD manufacturers, eSports companies to get the ball rolling. It will take time,” said Panigrahi.
Digital disruption is also a key component, since awareness of point of sale can be a concern that needs to be addressed. “The internet is changing everything. Consumers are understanding. Retailers are forced to understand as well. Earlier they looked at it as a trading opportunity. Now a lot more system integrators are looking to come in. As India moves towards a more “make in India, made in India” mentality this will change,” said Panigrahi.
Consoles and mobile have their own audience to generate, but Panigrahi believes AMD’s outreach can still be huge. “Console gaming is not very big. India is more about desktop and PC gaming. More than that it’s casual gaming on mobile devices followed by PC gaming. Console is the last one,” he concluded.
What do you think Can AMD turn the gaming market around for India
Source: Games In Asia
