It may seem like Sony is ubiquitous, but there are a few regions where it has yet to fully establish or penetrate the gaming market. Africa as a whole has been largely neglected by the company, usually lumping it in with Europe when it comes to matters of release days. That may be about to change soon, thanks to an investment in Cape Town-based publisher Carry1st.
The company specializes in facilitating Africans buying games using local infrastructure, but it’s been creeping its way into the development market as well, and three new games are in the works. CEO Cordel Robbin-Coker told CNBC that they hope to support Sony in a variety of ways, including digital payments. Sony and Carry1st have not disclosed the amount of the investment at this time.
According to CEO Cordel Robbin-Coker, talks with PlayStation began about nine months ago when he pitched that Africa may be the next gaming market to strike it big. He names Nigeria, Algeria, and Morocco as some of the countries with potentially massive gaming markets.
Speaking to CNBC, he explains that his team is thinking about where the next billion customers and gamers are going to come from, and their “pitch is that Africa is a prime market for that.” It’s tempting to believe Robbin-Coker, but it’s also worth remembering what an expensive hobby gaming is not just in South Africa, but the continent as a whole.
With the average salary in the country about $1,300 a month and a high unemployment rate, gaming is the last thing on the minds of many in South Africa. Nevertheless, it has been shown that unexpected markets can become lucrative hotspots, as Xbox has learned with Brazil.
Opportunities that aren’t obvious
Don’t be poisoned by my pessimism, however. There is a chance for this plan to work. This isn’t the company’s first foray into gaming, and it has made and scaled games for companies like Activision. “Sub-Saharan Africa’s gaming industry is expected to generate over $1 billion for the first time” this year according to research from Carry1st and venture capital firm Konvoy.
The company appears to have a compelling vision, as it has already generated $60 million thanks to investment from “Andreessen Horowitz, Bitkraft Ventures, Google, Riot Games, and rapper Nas.”
Carry1st was founded in 2018, so it’s no new kid on the block. However, it does have a lot to prove, especially with the big promises the CEO is making. This is one of the cases where you hope your pessimism is proven seriously wrong.
