According to a new study published by NewZoo, the overall free to play market spending by worldwide games is up significantly over 2010. The study indicates that Americans spending money on F2P titles is up 24% to a total of $1.2 billion.

Good financial reports do come with a caveat, however:

“The MMO games market is rapidly turning global. It has become increasingly important for MMO developers and publishers think carefully about which titles to publish in what territories and how to adapt the games according to local preferences, including monetization models that work best. Recent lay-offs and the sudden death of Lego Universe are serious warnings for the MMO games industry . Success will also strongly depend on how MMO companies extend their unique gameplay and IP across other game platforms, specifically mobile..” according to Peter Warman, CEO of games market research firm Newzoo and co-author of the 2011 MMO Games Market Report. The report compares key regions and provides country-specific data to support decision makers. A summary of key facts and insights are highlighted in the free Newzoo Trend Report: “MMO Games, Massively Popular"

Read the full report by clicking the link above to download the .pdf document.

I honestly like the cash shops I've had experience with. Games like LOTRO and DDO are the main two. Being able to choose which content to buy licences for and also to buy items that aid in quests, having res cakes to use at the end of a nasty wipe is handy, although I'll readily admit I've spent more than I intended gaining crafting levels in.

I think being able to buy items that suplement your gaming is good, if you were able to buy top of the line items however, in my opinion would be a horrible thing to be available in any game.

Did anybody else find it funny...that even the report is an example of F2P?

You can download a limited version of the report.  If you want the full thing, you have to pay $1400.

They also sell their Black Book - as well as selling various advertising options in the Black Book.

Take a look at who is in the sample of the Black Book as well...

...I mean, c'mon - this is not news - this is advertising.

edit: Here is a link to the report being discussed over on Gamasutra:  http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/38469/Report_47_Of_MMO_Spending_In_US_Comes_From_FreeToPlay_MMOs.php

I had to laugh at the first comment...because it points out a huge flaw in the numbers for the report.

Originally posted by Servant-XII
Numbers don't lie. As much as P2P purists want to malign the F2P model, the fact of the matter is that it makes more more for the company. At the end of the day, a company is in business to making a profit. Success stories for P2P models going F2P like LotR, AoC, CoH, and DCUO is proof that it's a viable money maker. People who don't understand this and attempt to demonize the F2P model (normally on a faulty premise and understanding or lack thereof) are normally individuals afraid of change. Giving players a choice of how they want to experience the game will always be a good business decision as it strengthens the consumer to business relationship.

So the bottom line is simple: it's nothing personal. It's just business.

Games build with p2p business model and budget forced to go f2p are going to be bigger games than f2p games developed with f2p budget.  As the market gets flooded with f2p games the more games players can play other than your own.  Let's see where it goes in 10 years.