News

How the Rise of In-App Purchases is Influencing the Mobile Gaming Industry?

Published

1 month ago

December 10, 2018

How the Rise of In-App Purchases is Influencing the Mobile Gaming Industry?

Photo Source: pixabay

The gaming industry captured the minds of users during 2000s, and now it generates large profits – almost $138 billion in 2018. Developers and operators must be happy about the industry showing growth in revenue of 13.3% compared to 2017.
Following the trend, the mobile gaming market is performing even better. The 25.5% growth means that this sector generates more than a half of a total income (51%). Console and PC segments are nearly equal, having 25% and 24% respectively. There are a number of reasons for mobile games blooming, including in-app purchases.

The freemium spirit
In general, in-app purchases stand for the ability of mobile applications to sell products or services, either virtual or real. Developers invented different approaches to integrating them using various types of apps, features, and interfaces. For instance, there are branded catalogs which sell goods through applications. But in-app purchases are way more typical for free-to-play games.
There is a freemium model of games. Combining features of both free and premium projects, these are completely free downloadable applications with integrated purchases. Owing to this approach, developers earn money with smaller deals inside the app instead of one-time payments. Some of the freemium apps offer simple ads disablement, while others provide unique in-game content. Gambling apps also follow this trend – they offer additional features for money, as well as provide different bonuses for such purchases listed on CasinoBonusCheck.com.

Evolution of mobile games
Now, let’s focus on the influence of freemium games growing in popularity. Experts from Scientific Revenue claim that developers move towards commercial sophistication. This trend is typical for projects that rely on micropayments.
To understand how freemium models affect mobile gaming, remember that they change the focus, moving sales from websites or online retailers like Amazon to games themselves. This way, developers can control the process, providing various offers with flexible prices, sales, and promotions.

Here are some of the current trends of the gaming industry:

Multiple points of sale. While premium games are sold on app markets, freemium products can use coins stores, popups with offers, and ubiquitous ads.
Various in-game offers. There may be unique daily or weekly sales, additional content, in-game currency, and so on.
Annuities. These are unique offers, valid during a certain period.
Live Operations. Thanks to in-app purchases, developers can focus on adding new stuff even after the game was launched. They include downloadable content and special promotions dedicated to specific events or major updates.

As small payments are really flexible, developers can easily modify them, trying to reach the maximum engagement. Analysts evaluate the efficiency of in-game content sales and decide whether it’s better to add advertisements or focus on unique offers.

Consequences of the freemium rise
So far as it’s clearer how in-app purchases set trends, we can think about positive and negative consequences. Note that there is no agreement among experts regarding this.

The good side
Ideal freemium games sell cosmetic changes only. Another approach features different types of content but includes an option to unlock them without paying real money. For example, Temple Run offers various enhancements which are available without extra expenses.
Decent freemium projects should focus on improving players’ experience by introducing new content. This is more typical for PC and console games where users can buy new visual styles for characters, unlock extra items and locations.
Free-to-download projects attract way more users who realize that they can easily dive into the game. Also, game providers can focus on improving the single product by implementing Live Operations rather than designing numerous sequels.

The bad side
The modern world is strongly focused on money. That’s why the majority of freemium games turn into pay-to-win or pay-to-play projects:

Pay-to-win. Players can buy in-game stuff to become more powerful and beat opponents.
Pay-to-play. Players can evade time limits and prolong the game process with in-app purchases.

In pursuit of revenue, developers focus less on improving the game itself. Many freemium projects create nothing new, simply offering benefits for premium players. This leads to users realizing they can simply pay and win instead of improving skills or building strategies, which kills the thrill of gaming.
The majority of mobile projects push pay-to-play or pay-to-win styles because it’s profitable now: Clash of Clans or Fruit Pop, just to name a few. It’s much worse for the industry when well-thought series like Dungeon Hunter follow such trends.

Future of in-app purchases
Freemium model works well for game developers as it allows expanding the audience thanks to free downloads and earning more money thanks to engagement strategies. Gamers are free to try different products and decide whether they deserve further investments.
It seems clear that mobile games will expand, generating more revenues compared to PC and console sectors. In-app purchases will definitely grow in popularity as well. Probably, companies will find new ways of implementing this feature, somehow different from pay-to-win and pay-to-play options. Eventually, it all depends on end users as they create the demand.

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Income Access

Income Access signs as latest sponsor supporting AIBootcamp2019

Published

2 days ago

January 15, 2019

George Miller

Income Access signs as latest sponsor supporting AIBootcamp2019

Income Access, Paysafe Group’s marketing technology and services provider, will sponsor the annual AffiliateINSIDER Bootcamp, which takes place on 21-22 March at London’s premier venue, Under the Bridge, Stamford Bridge. Income Access specialises in affiliate software, digital marketing and affiliate network solutions for the global iGaming industry.

Last year’s event was a sell-out at Chelsea, and AIBootcamp 2019 is expected to be no different. This year’s event will be attended by a host of iGaming affiliates who will gather to discuss digital disruption, learn new marketing techniques that serve to drive more traffic from affiliates to operator sites.

Erica Anderson, Director of Marketing at Income Access, which runs its own independent affiliate network, commented: “AIBootcamp brings together a powerful combination of knowledge and expertise from guest speakers to create an invaluable resource for the affiliate industry. The event has gone from strength to strength each year and as specialists in affiliate marketing strategy we value our collaboration with AIBootcamp, by way of both sponsorship and content participation.”

The event offers delegates a plethora of interactive presentations, conference workshops designed to help delegates grow their network throughout the industry.

“These bootcamps are created with affiliate entrepreneurs in mind. The content is curated to support iGaming affiliates get ahead of digital disruption with an injection of expert theory around everything from lead generation to the technical aspects of SEO and content marketing. The objective is to help affiliates grow their site traffic, get connected and learn the latest digital trends,” says CEO and founder of AffiliateINSIDER, Lee-Ann Johnstone.

We’re delighted to have Income Access join us again in supporting affiliate development and welcome affiliates from the iGaming Industry to this year’s digital learning and affiliate business coaching workshop, getting entrepreneurs ready for the competitive year ahead!

Details of our exclusive affiliate Elevate & Thrive business coaching workshop will be released in the coming weeks to excite you further – but you can be assured that attending this event will teach you the best tricks of the trade to grow your affiliate website both quickly and successfully.

For more information about this event, or to book your seat at this exclusive two-day digital accelerator for iGaming affiliates, visit: https://affiliateinsider.com/affiliateinsider-bootcamp/

For information on how to participate as a vetted agency, supplier or operator sponsor, contact the sales team via sales@affiliateinsider.com

Conferences

The First Prague iGaming Affiliate Conference: Smile-Expo Will Gather Gambling Industry Experts in Czech Republic

Published

2 days ago

January 15, 2019

George Miller

The First Prague iGaming Affiliate Conference: Smile-Expo Will Gather Gambling Industry Experts in Czech Republic

On April 11, the international company Smile-Expo will visit the Czech capital where it will conduct the first Prague iGaming Affiliate Conference – event about the affiliate advertising in the iGaming industry.

The Program of the Event

The event will be organized in the conference+demozone format and will unite the online gaming specialists from various countries.

The program of the event will be divided into two parts. In the beginning of the conference, the experienced marketing specialists will introduce presentations about the affiliate marketing in the gaming industry, while after the lunch, experts will change the focus to gambling.

Speakers will explain how to generate traffic and will share the strategies how to make marketing automated and lead the business to success.

Also, the professionals will dedicate their presentations to eSports regulations and casinos development in the Czech Republic. The visitors will learn how to keep the relevance on the gaming market and which hidden problems may emerge during the work with iGaming affiliate programs.

Apart from that, in the framework of the event, there will be two panel discussions. The first will be devoted to the innovative business with affiliate marketing, and during the second one, the experts will discuss how gambling is regulated in the Czech Republic.

Who Will Be Interested in the Event?

The conference will gather:
traffic arbitrage experts;
marketers;
game developers;
casino operators;
affiliate networks representatives;
PR managers.

Guests of the event will participate in the networking: visitors will have a chance to find new business partners and discuss strategies for further business development.

Organizer

The conference will be conducted by the international company Smile-Expo, which has been organizing large high tech B2B events for already 12 years.
Details and the program of the event are on the website.

News

Esports Entertainment Group Signs Affiliate Marketing Agreements With 14 Esports Teams, Bringing Total To 190, Launches Pool Betting

Published

1 month ago

December 12, 2018

George Miller

Esports Entertainment Group Signs Affiliate Marketing Agreements With 14 Esports Teams

Esports Entertainment Group, Inc., a licensed online gambling company with a specific focus on esports wagering and 18+ gaming, is pleased to announce Affiliate Marketing Agreements with 14 additional esports teams as the Company continues to ramp up affiliate marketing activities in support of its launch of vie.gg, the world’s first and most transparent esports betting exchange.

The addition of these 14 esports teams brings the total number of esports team affiliates to 190 since the Company’s first announcement on April 5^th, signifying widespread adoption of VIE’s favourable P2P wagering in which an esports fan always wins, as opposed to pitting fans against the “house” where the odds are heavily stacked against esports fans.

To this end, the Company is pleased to announce the addition of pool betting to VIE.gg. Pool betting is a further extension of our well received P2P model, which allows groups of opposing fans to wager against each other when their teams go head to head. This is especially attractive to the fan bases of smaller esports teams and is anticipated to be very successful in 2019.

NEWEST ESPORT TEAM AFFILIATES BRINGS PENETRATION INTO SOUTH EAST ASIAN MARKET

After significant expansion in Europe, South America and Central America, the addition of today’s esports teams represents a significant geographical expansion as they represent our first 11 Asian esports team partners as follows:

• Nepal:		8
• Vietnam:		2
• Bangladesh:		1

Asia represents a significant portion of the global esports market and the Company anticipates further penetration into Asian markets in 2019.

Grant Johnson, CEO of Esports Entertainment Group, stated, “I want to welcome all of our new esports team partners and especially those from Asia. The region has a huge esports fan base and we look forward to working closely with these teams as they engage with their fans at home and around the globe.”

ABOUT VIE.GG:

vie.gg offers bet exchange style wagering on esports events in a licensed, regulated and secured platform to the global esports audience, excluding jurisdictions that prohibit online gambling. vie.gg features wagering on the following esports games:

Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CSGO)
League of Legends
Dota 2
Call of Duty
Overwatch
PUBG
Hearthstone
StarCraft II

About Esports Entertainment Group:

Esports Entertainment Group, Inc. is a licensed online gambling company with a specific focus on esports wagering and 18+ gaming. Esports Entertainment offers bet exchange style wagering on esports events in a licensed, regulated and secure platform to the global esports audience at vie.gg. In addition, Esports Entertainment intends to offer users from around the world the ability to participate in multi-player mobile and PC video game tournaments for cash prizes. Esports Entertainment is led by a team of industry professionals and technical experts from the online gambling and the video game industries, and esports. The Company holds licenses to conduct online gambling and 18+ gaming on a global basis in Curacao, Kingdom of the Netherlands and the Kahnawake Gaming Commission in Canada. The Company maintains offices in Antigua, Curacao and Warsaw, Poland. Esports Entertainment common stock is listed on the OTCQB under the symbol GMBL.