Factbox: The $60 billion global games industry

Phil Spencer, corporate vice president of Microsoft Game Studios, poses after the Xbox 360 media briefing at the Wiltern theatre in Los Angeles June 14, 2010. Microsoft Corp christening its new motion-sensing game system ''Kinect'', on Sunday offered a sneak peek of upcoming titles it hopes will help draw a new generation of casual players into the 40 million-strong Xbox game console fold.

(Reuters) - The world's leading video game hardware and software makers, hoping to reignite the slumping $60 billion industry, meet this week at the annual E3 (Electronic Entertainment Expo) show in Los Angeles.

At the event, which is expected to draw 40,000 to 50,000 visitors, console makers will unveil a range of futuristic gadgets designed to pull in a new generation of players, and developers will detail new releases to spark interest in what they hope is the next blockbuster title.

Here are some facts about the industry and its players:

Industry Size:

* Global revenue $60.4 billion in 2009, seen rising to

$70.1 billion in 2015 (DFC Intelligence)

Console makers: Xbox 360 - Microsoft

* Launched in United States November 2005

* About 40 million units shipped

* Major initiative: expected to announce a launch date for

its "Kinect" controller-free system

PlayStation 3 - Sony Corp

* Launched in the United States and Japan November 2006

* About 35 million units shipped

* Major initiative: will show off its Move motion-sensor

platform

Wii - Nintendo Co Ltd

* Launched in United States November 2006

* About 70 million Wii units shipped

* About 15 million DS units shipped

* Major initiative: plans to launch a new portable machine

that allows users to play 3D games without using special

glasses. By March 2011.

Software publishers: Activision Blizzard

* Annual revenue: $4.3 bln

* Top franchises: Guitar Hero; World of Warcraft; Call of

Duty

Electronic Arts

* Annual revenue: $4.1 bln

* Top franchises: The Sims; Madden NFL; Need for Speed

Take-Two Interactive

* Annual revenue: $968 million

* Top franchises: Grand Theft Auto; Max Payne; Red Dead

Redemption

Ubisoft

* Annual revenue: 871 mln euros

* Top franchises: Assassin's Creed; Prince of Persia; Tom

Clancy titles like Splinter Cell

Thq INC

* Annual revenue: $829 mln

* Top franchises: Saints Row; WWE; Red Faction

(Reporting by Franklin Paul; Editing by Gary Hill)