Ambient Predicts Mobile EduGame Market to Double in Next Five Years

In 2013, the United States was the top buying country in the world for mobile edugames, finds the recent Ambient Insight report “2013-2018 North America Mobile Edugame Market.” And during the forecast period 2013-2018, the compound annual growth rate (CAGR) for edugame mobile products in North America is 12.5 percent, with revenues expected to nearly double from $227.97 million in 2013 to $410.27 million by 2018.

Ambient reports that the recent growth of game-based mobile learning parallels the meteoric rise of casual mobile games on smartphones, tablets, and Facebook at the expense of PC and console games.

Nick Earl, senior vice president and general manager of Electronic Arts Inc.'s mobile and social studios, has said that he sees all game labels bringing their best titles to mobile devices. This shift bodes well for edugame suppliers as it reflects a cultural readiness to participate in gameplay on handheld devices. The edugame numbers bear this out.

The majority of consumer edugame purchases fall into the two ends of the age spectrum: math and language learning for young children and brain trainers and brain fitness apps for older populations. Not surprising, the academic market is growing, particularly K-12, as schools seek ways to increase student engagement. And non-profits and governments continue to fund tourism-related edugames for the same reason: engagement.

And Ambient uncovered a number of catalysts are converging to energize the market for edugames. They range from alignment of interests to hardware advances. Ambient explains: “We are witnessing an explosion of interest by consumers in edugames. Business accelerators and incubators, sometimes encouraged by local government economic development initiatives, pave the way to success for startups. Brands seeking to increase interaction and affinity with their target demographic are willing to partner with content providers. Academic institutions push the creative boundaries and stimulate innovation. New revenue models, alternative funding, and new distribution channels add to the expansion of opportunities for suppliers.

Meanwhile, most of the inhibitors to the market are not unique to edugames, but rather to mobile learning or to game development in general, including visibility, logistics, and support.

To learn more, download the free abstract of “2013-2018 North America Mobile Edugame Market.”

International E-Learning Awards Announced

The International E-Learning Awards are given each year for the best work in e-learning, mobile learning, and blended learning, in two divisions: Academic and Business/Industry. All submissions are evaluated by the IELA Awards Committee, who look for a variety of attributes such as educational soundness and effectiveness, usability, and overall significance.

The 2014 winners in the business division were announced June 13, 2014 at the ICLW Conference in New York.

• Winner, E-Learning

  "ÅKU 2013 – Knowledge Update for Financial Advisors"

  ContentoWassum, Sweden

• Winner, Mobile Learning

  "ON DEMAND Platform"

  Video Arts, United Kingdom

• Winner, Blended Learning

  "Speexx"

  Speexx, Germany.

• Runner-Up, E-Learning

  "Therapist Training on Cognitive Behavior Therapy Anxiety Disorders"

  Illumina Interactive, Inc. and Center for Telepsychology, United States

• Runner-Up, E-Learning

  "Learning Coffee"

  Video Arts and Netex, United Kingdom

• Runner-Up, Mobile Learning

  "papagei PRONOUNCE"

  papagei.com GmbH, Germany

• Runner-Up, Blended Learning

  "Supporting New Hires with Onboarding Buddies & Mentors"

  TorranceLearning (with client DENSO-DIAM and partner Brightwing), United States

• Runner-Up, Blended Learning

  "IPC Training"

  ContentoWassum, Sweden

Public Sector E-Learning Trends

Government Elearning! Magazines’ E-learning User Study reports the views from 200 public sector organizations, out of 600 surveyed, and provides insights into the application of learning technologies.

Respondents to the study report using a wide range of technologies to support learning. Purchase plans were reported across all categories, ranging from 2 percent up to 50 percent, and included everything from learning management systems to mobile learning tools. Clearly, the public sector is migrating content to virtual, social, and mobile platforms, and investing in the enabling platforms to manage it all.

Products and services with highest rates of increases (based upon installed base) are gaming (313 percent), simulations (220 percent), and mobile learning (139 percent).

Other key findings from the study include:

• 49 percent of training hours are being conducted outside the traditional classroom-based, face-to-face format—down 19 percent from 60 percent in 2012

• e-learning accounts for 33 percent of all training hours

• virtual classroom accounts for 18 percent of all training hours

• annual learning and workplace technology (e-learning) budget is $6.9 million, almost level with $7.0 in 2012.

Download the complete report at www.2elearning.com.

2014 GAwards Announced

Each year, GSummit announces winners of the GAwards—representing the best use of engagement techniques for gamification in different industries and areas of business. GSummit crowdsourced the nominees to see who has had the most impact on the gamification communities.  Two of the top winners focused on workplace learning and talent development.

Here’s a recap on who won:

• Consumer Facing Applications - Winner: Air Canada’s “Earn Your Wings”

• Employee Training & Development - Winner: Delta’s “Ready, Set, Jet!”

• Employee Engagement - Winner: T-Mobile’s T-Community

• Finance - Winner: SaveUp

• Education - Winner: Class Dojo

• Media - Winner: TBWA/Chiat/Day’s Nissan “GT Academy”

• Social Good - Winner: XPRIZE

• Special Achievement Award - Winner: Jane McGonigal.

Learn more at http://www.gamification.co/2014/06/27/2014-gaward-winners.