The decline of the GSP industry

[Monk]

This market has been dead for a few years. I remember when it was actually fun to write code, etc to 'boost' server.

 

I miss the years between 2004 to 2007

[trancemode]

yep... you do see few old companies selling out while new one are barely making it in.

[SickPuppy]

This market has been dead for a few years. I remember when it was actually fun to write code, etc to 'boost' server.

 

I miss the years between 2004 to 2007

 

I wouldn't say dead, it is on the decline, but look at the economic situation in the world today. It is not just the GSP industry that is suffering.

 

My prediction is 2011 is going to be another hard year. Unemployment will remain high, and I believe it will exceed 10% by the end of the year.

 

We can expect further declines in the overall game server market as the average family sees a reduction in disposable income brought on by inflation, rising gas prices, and higher food prices.

 

I don't see a bright side until well after 2012. By then we will have a republican in the White House and control over the Senate.

[Karkey]

Don't we have a bad disaster on December 21 2012

 

Maybe a map a gun and a plane and a big boat will come in handy soon get saving!!

[proclan]

Step 1: Preparing for the Inevitable

 

 

Your friends and family will probably laugh at you when they find out you're preparing a plan to face the living dead, but Benjamin Franklin once said, "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure." Applying Franklin's advice to the possibility of a zombie outbreak will not only set you well on your way to survival, but you'll also have a chance to play the hero when your unprepared friends and family come running.

 

Here's how you can make sure you're ready in the event of an outbreak:

 

1.Study as much as you can about zombie outbreaks so you are able to recognize one as early as possible.

 

2. Familiarize yourself with all of the local retailers that carry guns and ammo.

 

3. Map the quickest routes to the largest nearby retail centers like a grocery store, shopping mall or superstore.

 

4. Un-infested shopping malls and superstores like Wal-Mart or Target have potential for long-term survival for small groups of the living.

Since Zombies are easily destroyed by fire, keep an extra can of gasoline on hand.

 

5. Scope out local shelters and know their entrances.

 

6. Get yourself a firearm and learn how to use it.

 

7. Remember the only way to stop a zombie target with a firearm is with a bullet to the brain, so practice, practice, practice!

 

8. If possible, stockpile ammunition because you're going to need a lot of it.

 

9. Put together a zombie attack care-kit that includes things like batteries, flashlights, canned goods, an emergency radio and first aid kit.

 

10. Keep in mind that it's probably better if you don't mention to too many other people

that you're preparing for a zombie outbreak.

The last place you want to be during a zombie attack is locked up in a hospital mental

facility.

People infected with early strains of the zombie virus, Solanum, will flock to hospitals to

find out what's wrong, and you'll wind up trapped in the eventual war zone.

 

You can read the rest here and print it out for your own safety:

 

http://www.mahalo.com/how-to-survive-a-zombie-attack

[Jesse]

I'm stuck at 6) ... harder than you think in Canada to do.

 

Anyways, I think that older games will stick around a bit longer - as sick kitten mentioned the amount of disposable income per household will only decrease which means no money to upgrade computers to play the latest and greatest games. I know quite a few people locally still playing older HL games on their single core computer. As long as they have an internet connection these older games will stick around longer than say NHL 09 or games that quickly die. However, its no mystery that people are switching to the $200-$300 consoles in order to play these resource intense games so we will see how far the decline goes...

[HIS-MOTHER]

THis one is incorrect.

 

3. Map the quickest routes to the largest nearby retail centers like a grocery store, shopping mall or superstore

 

You need to map routes to thier suppliers like

 

Sysco

US Foods

GFS

etc... These are the large warehouses that supply the retailers and most are unaware of them.

 

Better chance to get in and secure it and the food before the loooters get to it.

[{-SMAKU-}_MotorMouth]

THis one is incorrect.

 

 

 

You need to map routes to thier suppliers like

 

Sysco

US Foods

GFS

etc... These are the large warehouses that supply the retailers and most are unaware of them.

 

Better chance to get in and secure it and the food before the loooters get to it.

 

Those are restaurant suppliers. I like Wendy's burgers so I'll get to Sysco asap!

[ECF]

I think I will start making plans to round up as many zombies and weapons as I can. Then I can charge people to play Zombies for real. A nice inclosed warehouse should do the trick.

 

Give every paying customer a gun and some ammo and let them loose

 

NO REFUNDS IF YOU DIE!

[adamnp]

Monk Awakens!

[Monk]

I wouldn't say dead, it is on the decline, but look at the economic situation in the world today. It is not just the GSP industry that is suffering.

 

My prediction is 2011 is going to be another hard year. Unemployment will remain high, and I believe it will exceed 10% by the end of the year.

 

We can expect further declines in the overall game server market as the average family sees a reduction in disposable income brought on by inflation, rising gas prices, and higher food prices.

 

I don't see a bright side until well after 2012. By then we will have a republican in the White House and control over the Senate.

 

It's dead. It has been dead -before- the economy or whatever. I don't honestly believe the unemployment rate is 10%, it's probably closer to 20%

 

As far as politics go, it doesn't matter if it a dem, or a rep, they are all evil. Politicians only care about themselves, and their lobbyist friends.

 

Lobbyists are the reason why the housing market was allowed to go unchallenged, and the american people got fucked into bailing out companies who could give a shit less (AIG, etc)

[SickPuppy]

It's dead. It has been dead -before- the economy or whatever. I don't honestly believe the unemployment rate is 10%, it's probably closer to 20%

 

As far as politics go, it doesn't matter if it a dem, or a rep, they are all evil. Politicians only care about themselves, and their lobbyist friends.

 

Lobbyists are the reason why the housing market was allowed to go unchallenged, and the American people got fucked into bailing out companies who could give a shit less (AIG, etc)

 

If you do some research you will find that the housing problem in the U.S was created by Fannie Mae and Freddy Mac. During the Bush administration Republicans tried to reform Fannie and Freddy. This was blocked by Barney Frank and the Democratic party.

[Monk]

If you do some research you will find that the housing problem in the U.S was created by Fannie Mae and Freddy Mac. During the Bush administration Republicans tried to reform Fannie and Freddy. This was blocked by Barney Frank and the Democratic party.

 

Do some research?

 

The 'housing' problem was started LONG before them. It wasn't supervised because banks were throwing money to prevent it from being regulated. How ironic that the last 5 or 6 treasury secretaries, worked for, you guessed it, big banks, as CEO's.

 

"I believe that banking institutions are more dangerous to our liberties than standing armies. If the American people ever allow private banks to control the issue of their currency, first by inflation, then by deflation, the banks and corporations that will grow up around the banks will deprive the people of all property until their children wake-up homeless on the continent their fathers conquered." - Thomas Jefferson

[studeggle]

"I believe that banking institutions are more dangerous to our liberties than standing armies. If the American people ever allow private banks to control the issue of their currency, first by inflation, then by deflation, the banks and corporations that will grow up around the banks will deprive the people of all property until their children wake-up homeless on the continent their fathers conquered." - Thomas Jefferson

 

To True!!! Nice to see an educated person

[Richard]

Gaming is on a decline, I think we can just blame overpriced LAN's.

 

Dedicated servers is the market to get into.

[Monk]

I'm glad I'm out of this field, I didn't need the grey hair with being obsessed with FPS, or worrying about what my 'coworkers' say about me behind my back!

[Jesse]

You didn't like customers leaving because FPS would go down to 510 from 512 every so often? Thats a shame lol

[dimitrifrom31]

Gaming is on a decline, I think we can just blame overpriced LAN's.

 

Dedicated servers is the market to get into.

 

on a decline?

I have a +174% growth rate between december 2009 and december 2010.

 

A premium support with a strong knowledge of each and every game hosted with a "normal pricing" makes a big difference trust me.

[proclan]

Almost a 100 new orders for the month of December I don't see a decline here.

[Jesse]

Almost a 100 new orders for the month of December I don't see a decline here.

 

A couple big guys are half the size they were a couple years ago in terms of servers online. I think we saw more of a "rush" when game servers were relatively new but I know of a couple douzen gamers that I'm still in contact with from when MOHAA first came out that don't continue due to all of the cheats and hacks that plague PC games. Anyone that was younger (playing ps2/xbox) and have grown up are going to stick with consoles now that they are so cheap and powerful. I think we just aren't seeing new players enter the PC market anymore and the older ones got jobs and have grown out of gaming in clans.

 

Game Servers were a bubble and that bubble has really popped to be honest... just some soapy residue everyone is trying to mop up.

[SickPuppy]

HostileContact and some other smaller GSPs are experiencing growth but this is a economic driven event. As the economy declines and consumers have less disposable income they look for cheaper substitute products. This carries over into the GSP industry. Consumers shift their spending to the small less expensive GSPs. This does not indicate growth in the industry just a shift in consumers choices.

 

You have to look at the industry as a whole, who is leaving the business and why, how many new companies are entering the industry. It is possible for a few companies to grow and even have record growth in a declining industry.

 

As the economy recovers some if not most of the consumers that migrated to smaller GSP will return to the higher priced companies.

[dimitrifrom31]

As the economy recovers some if not most of the consumers that migrated to smaller GSP will return to the higher priced companies.

 

I doubt that a satisfied customer paying less will return to a higher priced company to get less support and higher bill.

What I meant is whatever the sector you work in, if you are doing a good job you don't have to worry that much about crisis.

[Monk]

All newer games are going to 1 hoster environments (gameservers.com for example). Kind of hard to sell servers when you can't get a license for a game.

 

Anyways, High performance servers are a thing of the past.

[SickPuppy]

I doubt that a satisfied customer paying less will return to a higher priced company to get less support and higher bill.

What I meant is whatever the sector you work in, if you are doing a good job you don't have to worry that much about crisis.

 

Satisfaction with your current provider has little to do with it. It is a social status phenomena. As we make more money we purchase higher priced items.

 

A Timex watch will serve you well and keep accurate time. I have several of them; however, I wear my Submariner, a Rolex, more often than all other watches I own. It is a status symbol. This social status phenomena carries over into everything we do. It influences the cars we drive, the cloths we wear, the food we eat, and even the game servers we rent.

 

As the economy recovers and consumers have more disposable income a great number will migrate back to the higher priced GSPs, not because they are displeased with the quality or service of their existing GSP, it is all about status.

 

Unfortunately we as a society in general equate price with value, the higher the price the greater the value. For tangible products this generally holds true but for a service related industry such as ours it can be just the opposite.

 

The economy is still on the decline and for the smaller cheaper GSPs that is good news. Smaller GSPs will see growth over the next few years as more and more consumers look for ways to save money. The mistake that some will make is the misinterpretation of a shift in the market place with market growth. What we are seeing now is a shift, not growth. As I stated in an earlier post this shift will cause the smaller GSPs to see an increase in their net operating income. To gain an insight on the health of the industry you need to analyze the industry as a whole.

[Jesse]

What we are seeing now is a shift, not growth. As I stated in an earlier post this shift will cause the smaller GSPs to see an increase in their net operating income. To gain an insight on the health of the industry you need to analyze the industry as a whole.

 

You can usually make a decent observation from the amount of people searching for it:

 

http://www.google.com/trends?q=%22game+servers%22&ctab=0&geo=all&geor=all&date=all

 

Close to double the people back in 07... oh those were the good times!