Video Game Counterfeiting and IP Popularity in Emerging Markets

It’s a good time to be a Pokémon fan, as evidenced by the first Pokémon Presents livestream of 2025, held on February 27. For those not in the know, February 27 is celebrated as Pokémon Day given the first game in the 29-year-old series released on that date in 1996. Expectations for this Pokémon Presents were particularly high given that the event comes ahead of the Nintendo Switch 2’s launch later this year; Nintendo’s consoles are the only platform to officially play mainline Pokémon titles on.

The Pokémon Company announced Pokemon Legends to be available later this year on Nintendo (Source: The Official Pokemon YouTube Channel)

As of this writing, the livestream’s official YouTube video has racked up over 4 million views with more than 168,000 likes , a small miracle as fans of the franchise tend to have strong opinions regarding the direction each title takes. The event saw the announcement of a new Pokémon Champions title, a release window for Pokémon Legends: Z-A, and updates to the massively popular Pokémon TCG Pocket.

It’s also no secret that Pokémon also enjoys a strong physical media and commercial presence, thanks to the popularity and availability of its trading cards across the world. This is, however, where the term ‘official’ can get a bit nebulous.

Niko Partners has tracked the video game industry for over two decades, and while we have seen piracy, counterfeiting and unauthorized distribution generally decline over that time, it is still an area that publishers need to pay attention to in emerging markets, especially as counterfeiting of physical goods remains rampant. Our research on counterfeit merchandise in India shows unofficial Pokémon cards are available to purchase at a fraction of the cost of official cards, with products sold ranging from individual 15-card packs to 10-12 pack ‘booster’ boxes. The cards within are of a high quality, with only one or two features distinguishing them from the official product.

Between 2002-’03, when the Pokémon anime first began airing in India, shops in Mumbai, the country’s de facto financial capital, began selling 10-card booster packs for around INR 100 (approximately $2 at that time). Ten- and 20-pack booster boxes were also available for a much higher price – mainly due to printing and graphic costs. What made them clear fakes was the backs of the cards having a whiter look than authentic products, most likely due to printers using incorrect color tones.

Fake and genuine Pokemon card (Source: TCGPlayer)

Accuracy of color didn’t seem to matter, however, as these packs would fly off the shelves and shops would frequently run out of stock. It was a common sight across the city to see children ripping open packs in front of their friends before settling down to play with and trade their (counterfeited) merchandise among each other.

The franchise’s longevity has translated into the longevity of these counterfeit cards as well. As of February 2025, booster packs can frequently be found available behind cash counters at student supply stores , with a 10-card booster now costing INR 30 (around $0.351*) – making pirated Pokémon cards one of the few consumer items not affected by inflation! Booster boxes are available for between INR 250-500 ($3-$6) depending on size.

The quality of cards has also improved, at least to the untrained eye. Gone are the whitish backs, and foils are shiny enough to pass for actual rare and ultra-rare cards, which can sell for large amounts on secondary exchanges. At least two factors distinguished these cards as fakes during Niko’s examination:

‘The Pokémon Company International’ misspelled as ‘The Pokémon Company Internation.xy6’ on the pack’s back (in small lettering).
The pack gives buyers 13 cards instead of the 10 advertised.

On the plus side, these cards will never see the light of day in resale markets or competitive environments. However, their existence and popularity indicate buyers’ willingness to participate in these ecosystems, even if through counterfeit channels. Further, the quality, cost, and perceived value of these physical products indicate at least three points:

Counterfeiting of popular franchises’ products remains prevalent in emerging markets such as India, where authentic merchandise is priced out of reach or not officially available.
The quality of counterfeit merchandise has increased even as production costs have come down, with unofficial merchandise from popular IPs readily available at street stalls and local stores.
Our conversations with store sellers indicate that IP based merchandise is among the highest selling items in stores that stock them, indicating high demand for global IP such as Star Wars, Dragonball Z and others.

Considering the popularity of counterfeit merchandise, it isn’t surprising that piracy also plays a notable role across video games in emerging markets. For example, a search for GTA 5, one of the most popular PC games in India, throws up the following results using Google’s auto-complete feature:

Like counterfeit Pokémon cards and Naruto t-shirts, it is quite easy to access pirated games in India. Many do so via local internet cafes or hardware stores, where ‘cracked’ versions of popular contemporary or legacy titles can be purchased for between INR 600-INR 1,200 (around $7-$14). The trend extends to mobile as well, with people able to pay up to INR 500 (around $6) to have their Android phones loaded with cracked versions of premium titles, or modified versions of free-to-play titles with access to large volumes of those games’ premium in-game currencies.

Niko Partners research into India’s games market has found that gamers in this market are beginning to spend more – albeit cautiously – on the games of their choice. Yet piracy and counterfeiting remain rampant across online and offline channels, and companies will need to study, understand and address this trend carefully when entering India’s market.

Of course, some level of counterfeiting and piracy is to be expected regardless of how mature a market may be, and IP owners and distributors usually maintain a buffer to account for revenue lost due to fake merchandise. Yet, in countries such as India, where high demand is usually met with no official presence or supply, the grey market and counterfeit merchants become the main beneficiaries of customers’ wallets.

Larger studies will need to be conducted around sizing the market of pirated merchandise and lost revenue for developers and IP holders. Niko Partners, over the past two decades, has conducted several sizing, market entry, and risk analysis projects across Asia and MENA. Reach out to us at sales@nikopartners.com to learn more about how our custom capabilities can help you achieve your strategic objectives for these complex, fast-growing regions.

*) This article assumes a USD/INR exchange rate of 87, except for the mention of 2002-’03 prices.

The Interplay Between Counterfeiting and IP Popularity in Emerging Markets