作者：Tan Tmangraksat（移动广告交易平台Mobclix战略发展总监）

从原来的砖块大哥大，到轻便的功能性手机，再到今天大众流行的智能手机，移动设备已经发生了革命性的变化。智能手机的优势，为手机休闲游戏创造了大量发展机遇。游戏开发者也正试图利用这一新媒介实现盈利，但却发现难以获取足够的用户下载量。为解决这一问题，许多第三方公司推出了多种获取用户的对策，但其中最为成功的莫过于安装奖励刺激方案（游戏邦注：这个方案通过提供虚拟货币奖励，刺激用户下载并安装其他应用或游戏）。

似乎在一夜之间，各个公司和平台都开始着手解决这一问题，并得到了开发者的积极响应。许多游戏发行商也因安装奖励刺激方案而获利丰厚，但苹果不久前的非自然下载限制政策，似乎开始让这种模式的繁荣发展划上了句号。我将在下文中解释关于此事的来龙去脉，指出开发者将面临的盈利创新挑战，没有一劳永逸的解决方案，开发者只有顺应时势才能求得生存。

iPhone apps(from gizmodo.com)

苹果新政策

据报道，苹果在今年4月份调整了App Store应用排名算法。应用曝光率基本上取决于其在排行榜上的名次，它也正是推动应用下载量，获得更多新游戏的关键所在。但一款应用如何才能攀向排行榜高峰？这其中究竟有何玄机仍未明朗，但就我们目前所知，短期内的用户粘性、积极评价、安装量都会对应用排名产生影响，另一妙方就是安装奖励刺激方案。

当然，这种策略所取得的成效也不尽相同，有些应用可以在2至4天内实现10万到30万次的下载安装量，从而推高自身排名，并因此促成更多自然下载量，它们的平均每用户获取成本约为0.5美元。尽管这种方式可以为开发商创造可观收益并跻身排行榜前列，但它其实无助于获取真正的忠实用户，也无从保证推广游戏或品牌的用户终身价值。苹果在针对这种模式推出限制政策时也表明了这一立场，但却没有详述该政策与调整排名算法之间的关联。

App Store在过去几个月中的应用排名已经发生了明显变化，但却并没有可证实这种情况的具体根据。

游戏开发者受到的影响

苹果限制政策显然在开发者之间引起了不小的震动，对他们而言，此举意味着他们又少了一个可推广应用并获取用户的途径，而含有虚拟货币并交叉推广其他产品的应用也会因此丧失另一大营收来源。这对多数开发者来说都是一个重要拐点。只有那些质量上乘，富有粘性的游戏才有可能在这种强烈打击中幸存下来并获得发展。也就是说，开发者只剩下选择新盈利解决方案，并持续为用户提供出色产品体验这条出路。

其他可行的营收渠道

游戏开发者当前面临的新挑战就是通过其他途径盈利。那些可顺应变化，及时调整运营方案者将取得更大的成就。开发者其实还有不少可同时盈利并推广应用的替代性选择：

·应用内置付费功能：这是最常规的盈利模式。虽然它并不一定能够获得同等水平的营收，但许多应用确实是通过这个先试后买的方法实现可观的经济效益。

·非奖励性展示媒介：因为移动媒介追踪和匹配技术的发展，开发者今后不但可通过这种媒介来推广游戏，而且还有可能由此提供创新性的盈利模式。开发者需牢牢掌握用户基本资料、兴趣和参与度等有关信息，如果他们可以准确区分和定位用户，就有可能培养出更有价值的忠实用户，从而为自己的新作储备大量用户资源。

·针对Android平台实行交叉推广方案：苹果声明限制奖励刺激下载模式后，有不少开发者开始将目光转向Android平台，许多原来将Android置于次席的开发者，现在已重新将其定义为优先考虑对象。

·广告赞助模式：可将具有影响力的高质量广告与游戏玩法紧密结合起来，将一种定制化品牌元素无缝植入游戏中并不会影响用户体验。因为这种模式本身的独特性和粘性，不少品牌和广告公司更乐于为此投入大量预算。开发者如果能够想出与应用本身相得益彰，并且极富创意的广告赞助方式，那就不难让自己的产品独树一帜，获得更多盈利机会。

·全屏/富媒体广告形式：与广告赞助模式相似，富媒体广告形式可带来更高的粘性和收益。如果你的游戏支持投放可运行于富媒体（例如视频）的广告，那就会对企业品牌和广告公司产生极大吸引力。这种方式比展示性广告更胜一筹，可通过富有粘性的元素和可辨识的品牌增加用户体验。

结论

开发者对应用搜索和曝光率的顾虑，已成为苹果限制奖励刺激下载模式风波引起的一个连锁反映。之前采用奖励刺激下载模式的开发者已经比其他同行更为领先，他们可以利用目前的用户基础交叉推广即将发布的新作。手机游戏仍是一个新生事物，尚未步入成熟发展阶段，我认为最有效的应用推广方式当属口碑营销。

苹果新政虽然引起开发者不满，但其实也刺激了他们的运营变革，促使开发者更加专注于为用户提供良好的游戏体验，通过“口碑营销”获得丰厚回报。除此之外，苹果的这一举动还推动整个应用市场探索最佳盈利模式。移动设备是一种极为个性化的产品，最有成效的广告将获得理想的用户参与度并且广受欢迎。总而言之，高明的创意及其用户体验方式，才是增加收益的根本。（本文为游戏邦/gamerboom.com编译，转载请联系：游戏邦）

Rising above Apple’s Ban on Incentivized Installs: Innovation is Key to Monetization   iPhoneiPadAndroid

By Tan Tmangraksat

Mobile phones have evolved from bulky handsets to slim feature phones to ever-popular smartphones. The advent of smartphones has provided the foundation for the rapid adoption of casual gaming on mobile phones. Gaming developers are seizing the opportunity to monetize this new media, but struggle to drive more users to download their game. To combat this problem, user acquisition strategies were born, and none quite as successful as the incentivized install, which relied on the demand for one game’s virtual currency to promote the discovery and install of another.

Businesses and platforms grew overnight to address these needs and developers responded. A vast majority of gaming publishers experienced great success and growth using the incentivized install model until Apple’s recent decision to ban such offers from the App Store. Below, I’ll address the current state of affairs, and also challenge developers to innovate and evolve their monetization strategy. Nothing lasts forever and successful developers must adapt in order to survive.

Apple’s Decision(s)

In April, reports swirled around Apple tweaking the App Store rankings with a new algorithm. The visibility that comes with having an app at the top of the rankings leads to organic downloads and is one of the most powerful and obvious ways to drive more users to a game. But how does an app get to the top? Although the “secret sauce” is still unknown, what we do know is that some combination of user engagement, positive reviews and installs, all in a short period of time, seems to be a contributing factor. What else helps? The incentivized install.

Results vary based on the app, but some apps could drive well over 100,000 – 300,000 installs over a two to four day period to propel their rankings in the store and further drive organic installs, all with the visibility they bought at an average of $0.50 per user. While this proved to be a lucrative way for developers to generate revenue and get to the top – it did not necessarily create a mode for acquiring users that would truly add lifetime value to the promoted game/brand. Apple’s subsequent ban of incentivized installs echoes this sentiment, but it does not explicitly elaborate on the improvements to its algorithm. There have been dramatic changes in rankings over the past few months, but nothing seems to be concrete, and the black box created by Apple has produced a speed bump for some developers.

Effects on Game Developers

Apple’s ban has obviously had consequences for developers. On one hand, a tactic that is used to acquire users has effectively been removed from an app’s promotion strategy. On the other hand, for an app that has acted as a “publisher” and utilized virtual currency to promote other app titles, it has lost a portion of its revenue stream. This is a pivotal turning point for many.

Inevitably, only those with true quality and stickiness will be able to survive this seeming storm and remain contenders in the mobile gaming space. That being said, clear alternatives to a monetization strategy must be adopted and improved to continue delivering the best experiences for the user.

Alternative Revenue

Game developers are now faced with a new challenge – making money through other means. Those who can adapt the fastest will face the greatest success. There are a variety of ways that can be explored and improved upon to continue to generate revenue for apps and help promote them at the same time:

- In-app purchases: This is the most conventional method of monetization. While it may not garner the same level of revenue, many apps have generated a healthy portion of their capital through this tried and tested offering.

- Non-incentivized display media: With the advances in targeting and tracking in mobile media, developers will not only have to consider this alternative to promote their games, but also innovate to provide an efficient method of driving revenue through this. Developers should strive to have a firm grasp of their audience in terms of demographics, interests and engagement. Being able to segment and sell to audiences efficiently will drive a higher quality user acquisition for a stickier user, and higher lifetime value than a user who does not engage in the new title. Effectively, this will drive prices up for inventory that converts.

- Developing CPI for Android or cross-platform strategy: An obvious effect of Apple’s announcement has been the increased facilitation to develop titles on the Android platform. Many developers that had put Android on the backburner have now re-prioritized to weeks instead of months.

- Sponsorships: These high-impact quality advertisements revolve around direct integration into gameplay. Adding a custom component exposes brands to players in a seamless manner that does not interrupt the user experience. Brands and agencies provide higher budgets for these executions due to the exclusivity and engagement that it drives. Being creative and figuring out the appropriate sponsorship strategy for your app will make you stand out amongst the rest and garner greater opportunities for increased monetization.

- Full-screen/rich-media enabled units: Similar to sponsorships, rich media ad units drive higher engagement and command higher rates. Ensuring that your game is developed to support and serve ads that can run rich media from expandables to video and beyond are highly attractive to brands and agencies. This is a step above the standard display ad and will provide an enhanced user experience with engaging components and recognizable brands.

Conclusion

App discovery is an underlying cause to the chain reaction of events that Apple’s announcement has ignited. Those titles that have taken advantage of incentivized installs already have a leg up on current and any new developers who enter the marketplace. They can leverage their current reach to cross promote their upcoming titles to drive growth. While mobile is still in its infancy and has yet to be perfected, the most tried and true way to drive users to an application is through word of mouth.

Apple’s decision, albeit not favorable, has sparked a path to innovation. Developers are further committed to providing users with the best gaming experiences possible while challenging businesses to ensure that their efforts are appropriately rewarded with “word of mouth.” Additionally, it has challenged the marketplace to evolve and figure out the best ways to monetize these opportunities. Mobile devices are very personal – the most effective advertising will have foundations in user engagement to the point that ads might actually be welcomed. Once again, quality of the creative and how it is delivered to the user is the driving force behind increased revenue.

Tan Tmangraksat is director of strategic development at mobile ad exchange Mobclix, a Velti company. He oversees strategic partner and platform development for the Mobclix exchange. Tan joined Mobclix from Yahoo! where he was responsible for pricing and yield optimization for the entire western sales region. He joined Yahoo! as part of the BlueLithium acquisition where he contributed strategic leadership and direction and was instrumental in their integration with the Right Media Exchange. At BlueLithium, Tan managed their key partnerships as well as media optimization strategy to help grow the network’s reach significantly. Tan’s expertise in managing strategic relationships, monetization, media planning and executing new revenue generating opportunities successfully

brings brands to premium publishers while building stellar products and teams from the ground up. Tan holds a degree in Political Economy from the University of California.（source:gamezebo）