游戏邦注：本文作者是Trip Hawkins，其为顶级社交应用发行商Digital Chocolate的首席执行官，该公司的作品包括《Millionaire City》、《MMA Pro Fighter》和《Tower Bloxx》。Trip曾参与定义苹果个人电脑，同时还协助创建EA和3DO公司。文章主要分享手机游戏制胜10大关键要素。

Trip Hawkins from sfgate.com

iPhone在西方的风靡给手机游戏和内容市场增加活力，但手机游戏若要获得成功，以下10大要素不可或缺。

1. 移动网络

推动互联网获得成功的原则需转移至手机网络和设备。这包括创新、健康的内容供应链、社交价值、病毒式传播、病毒式探索、免费试用以及针对手机内容的多种付费渠道。1999年日本手机资料刚问世时，DoCoMo成功把握契机，如今日本用户覆盖面在全球处于最高水平，手机资料和手机内容的用户消费水平也位居榜首（游戏邦注：据悉，日本用户通过手机设备发出的电子邮件比台式电脑多）。韩国借鉴该模式关键要素，同样取得不俗成就。西方许多手机公司忽略DoCoMo公司，而我们能够从其他姐妹有线宽频公司获得的经验是，如今由于出现互联网，用户更多消费资料而非音频。

2. 3G宽屏速度

为了能够提供类似互联网的体验，3G是网络运作的基本要求。这是2G所无法提供的。

3. 触屏控制装置

另一个必不可少的元素就是触屏带来的“流水”体验。依靠感应电流的电容触摸屏幕是理想选择，因为它们更能够带来“横扫”体验。这种水平的用户体验显然才能激发公众想象力。

4. 绑定计费系统的应用商店

诸如苹果App Store（游戏邦注：其采用DoCoMo的多数商业惯例）之类的购物体验对消费者和供应链来说都是不可缺少的。

5. 虚拟交易

特别游戏，我们会发现游戏如今已从产品转变为服务，从付费体验转变为嵌入免费试用，游戏嵌入虚拟交易，玩家通过购买道具获得充分享受。

6. 提供完整网络

网络需要清理，但它们是重要经济元素，这些元素需植入手机平台（游戏邦注：就像横幅广告网络）。

7. 健康的内容供应链

DoCoMo最初付给内容发行商91%的内容费用，同时向创新和专业供应商提供支持，这些供应商能够推动市场发展和扩大。目前，Facebook和苹果等公司其实过于放任自由；他们对应用供应链习以为常，高估大型公司和长尾公司（游戏邦注：所谓的长尾理论是指只要通路够大，非主流的、需求量小的商品“总销量”也能够和主流的、需求量大的商品销量抗衡）的重要性。

8. 新兴中层公司

互联网内容或者App Store内容可以分成3大类：大型公司、长尾公司和新兴小型公司（游戏邦注：这类公司主要针对本土手机媒介进行创新开发）。App Store运营商需积极培养新兴中层公司。长尾公司最终将能够创造经典作品，将业余人员培养成专业人才。但是长尾公司更多被视为供应链的开发环节，并非主要驱动力量。大型公司无法定义或者发展新媒介（游戏邦注：互联网就是证据）。为了充分发展中层公司，App Store开发商需积极辨别、帮助和支持系列有望发展成下个谷歌或手机Facebook的小型公司。

9. 移动、跨平台社交互动

如今受台式PC主导的社交媒体概念将会朝移动和跨平台方向发展。这是为什么呢？首先，相比50-60亿部手机设备而言，PC只有10-20亿台。其次，相比用户需要时刻连网获得社交价值而言，手机设备却能轻易互动。这个转变已在日本实现，西方国家还需这方面需求还有待提高。最后，当玩家登陆云端社交媒体服务时，他们会希望能够同任何网络或平台的好友或其他用户联系。能够覆盖更多平台的公司将会处于有利地位。

10. 社交网络将成为手机应用而非手机门户

Facebook俨然已是款强大手机应用，但它绝不会发展为门户网站（游戏邦注：就像其在PC所扮演的角色）。社交网络需具备符合手机平台的浓缩功能，同其他移动应用公平较量。

手机平台无疑很早就被认为具有强大市场潜力，问题、机会都已开始慢慢涌现。（本文为游戏邦/gamerboom.com编译，如需转载请联系：游戏邦）

10 Things Needed for Mobile Games Success

By Trip Hawkins

Western fascination with the iPhone has invigorated the mobile games and content market, but here are ten things that must happen for mobile to fulfill its enormous destiny:

1.  It’s About the Mobile Web

The principles that have made the World Wide Web such a huge success have to be enabled on mobile networks and devices. This includes innovative and healthy content supply chains, social value, viral spread, viral discovery, free trial, and having a variety of ways to monetize and bill for mobile content. DoCoMo did this right from the beginning of mobile data in Japan in 1999, and today Japan has the highest user penetration, highest user spending on mobile data, and highest spending on mobile content. Far more email in Japan is sent from mobile devices than from desktops. Korea copied the key elements of this model and had similarly great results. In the West, many phone companies ignored DoCoMo and what had been learned from their sister wireline broadband companies, where again today we have consumers spending more on data than on voice because of the Web.

2.  3G Broadbrand Speeds Are a Requirement

To really feel like the Web, 3G is the baseline requirement for network performance. It didn’t happen with 2G.

3.  Touchy Feely: Touchscreen Controls

Another baseline requirement appears to be the better feeling of “flow” that is provided by a touchscreen. Capacitive touchscreens that rely on sensing electricity levels are ideal because they can be more “swipey.” This quality of user experience has obviously caught the imagination of the public.

4.  App Stores with Integrated Billing

A shopping experience like Apple’s App Store that adopts many of the DoCoMo business practices is also a requirement for both the customers and the supply chain.

5.  Virtual Economies Will Lead

For games in particular, we will see a shift from games as a product to games as a service and a shift from paying for the game to free trial with paying for the stuff you need to fully enjoy the game.

6.  Offer Completion Networks

Yes, they need to be cleaned up, but they are an important economic element and they need to migrate to mobile like banner ad networks have.

7.  Content Supply Chain Health

DoCoMo originally paid 91% of content fees to their content publishers and also cultivated support for the innovative and serious professional suppliers who could scale and help drive market growth. Today, companies like Facebook and Apple are actually too laissez faire; they take the app supply chains for granted and overrate the importance of both the big companies and the long tail.

8.  A New Middle Class Must Rise

The supply of Web content or App Store content can divide into three classes: Big companies, the long tail, and an emerging middle class of newer and smaller companies that are doing native development that is innovative and that fits the new mobile medium. The operators of the App Stores need to actively cultivate this new middle class. Ultimately, the long tail will produce some gems and develop some amateurs into professionals. But the long tail must be viewed more as a developmental part of the supply chain, not the key driver. And big companies cannot define or grow a new medium (the Web being Exhibit A). To develop this middle class, the App Store owners need to actively identify, help and support a handful of small companies that have the potential to scale into the future Googles and Facebooks of mobile.

9.  Social Will Go Mobile and Across Platforms

The entire concept of social media that is now dominated by desktop PCs will shift to the mobile side and cross-platform. Why? First, because there are only going to be one to two billion PCs compared to five to six billion mobile devices. Second, because you especially need to be connected 24/7 to obtain social value and this can only come from your mobile device. The shift already happened in Japan – in the West it is merely awaiting the rest of the needs on this list. Finally, when you get to social media as a service in the cloud you will want to connect with friends and other people regardless of what network or device they are coming in from. Companies that are better at covering more platforms will have an advantage.

10.  Social Networks Will Be Mobile Apps but Not Mobile Portals

Facebook is already a potent mobile app, but won’t be the same kind of “destination” that it has become on the PC. Social networks will have to have a shrunken feature set to fit on the mobile side and will compete on a more level playing field with other apps that are entirely crafted with mobility in mind.

There is compelling early evidence of our enormous market potential and how these issues and opportunities are already taking shape. Morgan Stanley analyst Mary Meeker did a great job at the recent Web 2.0 conference of organizing some of the facts and data behind these trends. You can find her slide show at this link, which outlines these exciting topics in full.（Source：gametheoryonline）