According to JPR, the market for gaming PCs is larger than it was previously believed to be. The firm said today that the estimated worldwide PC gaming hardware shipments for the enthusiast segment has a worldwide CAGR of 9%. The performance segment has a CAGR of 19% and the mainstream segment has a CAGR of 21%.

The total PC gaming hardware market in 2008 was over $20 billion and JPR says that number will grow to over $34 billion by 2012. The current economy has shifted gaming from consoles to PC gaming according to JPR because the cost of a HDTV added to a game console makes PC gaming less costly and more flexible.

"Don't let the retail numbers fool you," said Ted Pollak, co-author of the report series. "Enthusiast PC gamers often latch onto one or two games that offer multiplayer options and stick to these titles for years. Hardware is where they spend the big bucks. The retail numbers don't capture the casual and digitally distributed games either. Retail software figures are not an accurate barometer for the health of the PC gaming industry."

Via JPR