Tag: game industry news

Zynga pins hope on mobile games

| June 3, 2013

Mobile games may determine the fate of Zynga

Troubles game developer Zynga has been working to restructure itself recently. The company has struggled to find some stable ground after losing the faith of Facebook, which had once been its primary distribution platform. Zynga has set its sights on mobile games, believing that the mobile space will provid ethe company with the momentum it needs to reclaim the favor of consumers throughout the gaming market. Zynga has yet to find this momentum, however, as it has not yet produced a successful mobile game.

Company reporting drop in revenue and daily active users

Zynga has reported an 18% drop in revenue in the latest quarter of this year. The company’s financial troubles have continued for several consecutive quarters. Zynga’s financial problems are being exacerbated by the falling number of consumers that are playing the company’s games. Zynga has reported that the number of daily active users has dropped by 21% in the latest quarter. The company believes that mobile games can turn its fortunes, but whether or not the company can perform well in the mobile space has yet to be seen.

Zynga - Pinning hopes on mobile gamesZynga aims for success with sequel to Draw Something

Zynga is placing much of its hope for the future on a new game it is planning to release in the near future. This game is a sequel to the highly acclaimed Draw Something, which was originally developed by Omgpop. Zynga spent $180 million to purchase the rights to Draw Something in March of 2012, but consumers quickly lost interest in the game once they heard that Zynga had become involved. Draw Something had been one of the most popular mobile games of its time and Zynga believes that consumers will respond well to a genuine sequel to the title.

Mobile games have trouble holding consumer attention

Consumers tend to lose interest in mobile games rather quickly, due to the nature of these games. Mobile games are not typically designed with any significant level of depth, thus making the entertainment they offer to consumers somewhat limited. Those with short attention spans typically move on to new mobile games quickly, even if their experience with a particular game had been favorable.

Spending in mobile games dominated by “whales”

| May 31, 2013

Playnomics sheds some light on spending in mobile games

Playnomics, a social game analysis firm, has released new data concerning the financial aspects of mobile games and in-app purchases. Mobile games are typically free to obtain, which is partly why they have become so popular among consumers. Because many of these games are free, developers rely heavily on advertisements and in-app purchases to generate revenue. In-app purchases, often referred to as microtransactions, are somewhat controversial among consumers, but any controversy surrounding the issue has not been enough to deter consumers from actually spending money on mobile games.

Spending dominated by top 1% of consumers

According to the data from Playnomics, there is a significant disparity among the consumers that are spending money on mobile games. The data shows that the top 1% of new consumers spending money on these games represent 33% of all spending on these games. These consumers are referred to as “whales” in the mobile games space because they hold considerable purchasing power. The data also shows that the top 20% of consumers represent more than 90% of all spending in mobile games.

Mobile Games SpendingMajority of consumers are not spending money on mobile games

Playnomics has examined the behavior of more than 1.7 million consumers that play mobile games and social games. The company found that approximately 0.77% of these consumers were spending money on in-app purchases. The data suggests that the vast majority of consumers are not spending any money on mobile games, apart from the price they pay to acquire games that are not free outright. Playnomics notes that the top 1% of consumers spending money on these games represent the majority of the spending being seen in the mobile games space.

Data shows that a single consumer can spend as much as $7,400 on mobile games

The data shows that a single consumer that is in the 1% bracket can spend as much as $7,400 on in-app purchases. The average consumer will spend approximately $43 on mobile games and in-app purchases. Playnomics notes that consumers will typically spend nearly 30 minutes per play session and complete an average of 5.9 play sessions in any given day.