Google reveals Asia's mobile app and game market is expected to reach $7.5 billion by 2573.

Google reveals Asia's rising mobile app and game market will reach $7.5 billion by 2573, with Vietnam emerging as a star, with app revenue growing 65% and over 6 billion downloads in a single year.

On November 14, 2025, at 2:36 a.m., Nikkei Asia reported that Google reveals that the mobile games and app market will grow to $7.5 billion by 2573. Asia will be the heart of this expansion. From popular Japanese apps like Pokémon Go to large-scale MMOs from South Korea, the company says Asia, particularly emerging markets, continues to grow despite shrinking revenue in many countries.

Google said in-app purchases in emerging markets grew by an average of 5% annually in the first three quarters of this year, while the top market, the US, shrank by 3%, as courts in several countries ruled that Google and Apple must allow users to download apps outside their own stores.

Vietnam emerges as Asia's leading market

Mark Wu, Managing Director of Google Vietnam Vietnam—home of Axie Infinity and Flappy Bird—was the fastest-growing app revenue country in Asia, with revenue surging an average of 65% in the first three quarters of 2025.

Speaking at the Google Apps Summit in Ho Chi Minh City, which attracted more than 700 app developers over two days, Woo addressed questions from Nikkei Asia, saying that Google never pressured developers to choose Android over iPhone.

Aditya Swamy, Managing Director, Google Play He added, “We never tell developers to build apps for one platform. We want them to be universal, reaching as many users as possible and providing diverse insights.”

He also noted that in some markets with homogeneous user structures, developers may choose to focus on a single platform, but emerging markets like Vietnam are highly diversified, with Japan having a high iPhone user base while Vietnam prefers Samsung and Xiaomi.

Vietnam generated 6 billion downloads, mostly from foreign users.

Google revealed that developers in Vietnam will create 6 billion downloaded apps by 2567, with 5.7 billion of those downloaded from overseas, generating VND2 trillion ($75.9 million) in international revenue through Google Play and creating 490,000 jobs, including manufacturing jobs, with Google's Pixel phones also being manufactured in Vietnam.

While major tech companies have been reluctant to open offices or build data centers in Vietnam due to data regulation and content control, Google opened its first office in the country last year.

Woo noted that Vietnam's strength lies in creating puzzle games and casual apps, while China excels at creating large-scale games, and Indonesia boasts notable innovations such as vertical video app NetShort.

AI has become the core of the app industry

At the event, AI technology was a key topic, with developers touring booths demonstrating how to use AI to extend games to YouTube or for video editing, Swamy said.
“Over 90% of developers worldwide are already using AI, whether it’s writing code or creating marketing materials.”

He also advised companies to target Gen Z users, as they are expected to become the most influential and potential spending group by 2573.

Google also pointed out that non-game apps like fitness and video have recently surpassed games in revenue from in-app purchases, and that Vietnam is shifting away from hyper-casual games that rely on ad revenue to more complex games, health apps and chatbots that generate hybrid revenue from both ads and in-app purchases.

Google has also partnered with the Hanoi government to hold webinars to train developers to comply with state laws. Vu noted that the company is not yet ready to build data centers in the country, but already has data centers in Thailand and Malaysia.

He said “Expanding the data center network is crucial in an era of increasing global AI adoption.”

refer : asia.nikkei.com

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