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每日观察:关注iOS游戏《无尽之剑》盈利模式(6.30)

发布时间:2011-06-30 15:16:32 Tags:,,,,

1)Zynga日前宣布与无线服务供应商AT&T合作,向后者的Android手机提供定制内容,例如《Words With Friends》和《Zynga Poker》等游戏。双方都没有描述这些内容的细节,但其新闻发布稿指出Zynga将在AT&T的广告赞助活动中提供免费的游戏虚拟货币,两者的合作范围还将包括不同游戏机制的测试组件、网络解决方案,以及多种AT&T的Android设备玩游戏的电池节能技术。

words-with-friends(from elecinfo.info)

words-with-friends(from elecinfo.info)

2)前美国动视、Acclaim Games高管Howard Mark最近为其新公司Gamzee融资100万美元,用于开拓HTML5跨平台游戏业务。Gamezee这家位于洛杉矶的公司成立于今年4月份,本轮融资支持者包括Bristol Investment Fund、Bigpoint首席执行官Heiko Hubertz等。

Howard Mark曾协助Bobby Kotick在90年代初期成立了美国动视,后来从破产的游戏发行商Acclaim Entertainment购得Acclaim Games商标(游戏邦注:Acclaim Entertainment后被迪士尼旗下的Playdom收购),不久前与Playdom同时被美国联邦贸易委员会起诉,因违反儿童隐私保护条例而被罚款。

3)韩国手机游戏发行商Gamevil宣布投入1000万美元与外部开发商深入合作,扩大化其产品阵容。Gamevil这个战略的第一步是收购Ganawoo Choi推出的热门手机游戏《Cartoon Wars》原作、继作和衍生项目《Cartoon Wars Gunner》的独家发行权和部分版权。

Cartoon Wars(from ipadown.com)

Cartoon Wars(from ipadown.com)

Gamevil之前发布的成功作品包括《Zenonia》和《Air Penguin》,该公司今年第一季度利润达230万美元,运营利润率超过40%。

4)市场调研公司Canalys最近预测,由于开发者采用了多种盈利解决方案,2012年手机应用商店直接收益将达141亿美元,其中IAP(应用内置付费功能)及订阅模式将占据主要营收份额。

2012年应用市场收益将比2011年的73亿美元增长92%,并于2015年达到367亿美元,复合年增长率将近50%。

5)据报道,诺基亚Ovi Store目前每日新增30万个帐号,每日下载量已达600万次。该应用商店现有4万8千款应用,每周新增1000款产品。

Ovi store(from intomobile)

Ovi store(from intomobile)

截止2011年5月底,已有170多家开发商在Ovi Store实现100万次下载量,其中有15家公司分别创造了1000万至2000万次下载量,有5家公司的下载量介于2000万至3000万之间,而Offscreen Technologies公司则收获了7200万次下载量。Ovi Store目前在42个国家支持121家运营商计费服务。

6)热门手机游戏《愤怒的小鸟》终于在近日登陆Windows Phone 7平台,这个WP7版本游戏在美国售价2.99美元(游戏邦注:而iPhone版本仅售0.99美元,Android版本是广告赞助免费版)。

wp7-angry-birds(from downrightwireless.com)

wp7-angry-birds(from downrightwireless.com)

7)在最近的GameHorizon会议上,Epic高管Mark Rein透露,售价5.99美元的《无尽之剑》iOS版本目前已创收1120万美元,该游戏开发成本为200万美元,其中有40万美元用于发布后的技术维护。

该游戏由Chair Entertainment的12人团队所开发,其每人每月投入的回报率堪比《战争机器》开发团队。应用内置付费功能(IAP)所创造收益占45%,多数用户选择的是20美元而非1美元的IAP付费选项。

Infinity Blade(from toucharcade.com)

Infinity Blade(from toucharcade.com)

但Mark称他并不认为免费模式适用于《无尽之剑》,这款游戏如果采用了免费模式,并且要创造与当前的付费和IAP模式一样多的收益,那么就需实现比目前多30倍的下载量才行。

提到Android平台发展机遇时,他指出Android Market目前最大下载容量是50MB,而《无尽之剑》就有585.1MB,这意味着还有535.1MB需通过Epic服务器下载,这对公司来说成本太高了;另外Android平台的分裂性也是一个不容忽视的问题。

针对平板电脑游戏是否应售价20至40美元的问题,Mark表态称他并不认为平板电脑设备已拥有足够的安装基数,在这个平台投入800万美元开发售价20美元的游戏尚无多大优势;但他同时也并不拥护99美分的定价策略,并表示人们愿意花10美元下载电影,或者13美元下载音乐,所以当然也愿意以99美分以上的价格玩游戏,但平板电脑游戏的质量必须高度接近AAA掌机游戏,才有可能售出20美元以上的价格。

8)应用搜索引擎Chomp最新报告显示,用户通过Chomp搜索的Android付费应用下载量同比上月增长了2%。

Chomp指出在今年5月份,Chomp网站有95%下载量来自免费应用,仅有5%属于付费内容。但比起4月份的3%付费应用,5月份的5%已经算是小有进步。

Android app downloads(from chomp)

Android app downloads(from chomp)

从付费应用的类型来看,下载量最大的Android应用属于99美分的产品(约占1.7%),居于其次的是售价2美元以下的应用(约占1.5%)。

most popular Android categories(from chomp)

most popular Android categories(from chomp)

在Chomp获得最多次推荐的付费应用是Beautiful Widgets(售价2.87美元);最受欢迎的应用类型仍是游戏产品,占据27.1%的份额。

iOS app downloads(from chomp)

iOS app downloads(from chomp)

iOS付费应用下载量略下降1%,比起4月份,0.99美元iOS应用的下载量增长了2.4%,而售价在14.99美元以上的应用则下降0.4%,在16.99至899.99美元的“其他售价应用”类型中,31.99美元应用占35%的比重。(本文为游戏邦/gamerboom.com编译,如需转载请联系:游戏邦

1)Zynga Signs Deal With AT&T for Custom Android Content

By AJ Glasser

Zynga and wireless service provider AT&T announced a partnership today that brings customized content in Zynga mobile games like Words With Friends and Zynga Poker to AT&T’s shelf in Android Market later this year.

Though the content was not described in detail, the press release indicates that it will be available from within the game. Additionally, Zynga will offer free in-game currency as part of the partnership and participate in giveaways at AT&T sponsored events. The partnership also features a testing component for different game mechanics, network solutions, and battery-saving techniques for games on various AT&T Android devices.(source:insidemobileapps

2)Howard Marks’ Gamzee Secures $1M For HTML5 Game Development

by Frank Cifaldi

Former Activision executive and Acclaim Games owner Howard Marks has secured $1 million in seed funding for his new venture, Gamzee, which will develop cross-platform games on the HTML5 format.

The Los Angeles-based company, which was founded around April of this year, was able to secure the funding from investors that include Bristol Investment Fund, former Liberty Digital CEO Jarl Mohn, Bigpoint CEO Heiko Hubertz, and Greycroft partner Paul Bricault.

Developing for HTML5 could be seen as a risky venture, given that the format is still under development, but Marks sees it as an untapped opportunity.

“We believe that we’re on the forefront of the next big explosion in games — one where you can play social games with your Facebook friends on any device with a Web connection. And apparently, we’re not alone in that belief,” Marks told VentureBeat.

When we last heard from Marks — a longtime game industry veteran who helped to shape the modern Activision with CEO Bobby Kotick in the early 1990s — he was overseeing Acclaim Games following a trademark acquisition from bankrupt game publisher Acclaim Entertainment.

That company, which mainly published free-to-play client-based MMOs, was acquired by Playdom, which was itself acquired by Disney, which shut the company down late last year.

Marks was recently named in a case against Playdom by the Federal Trade Commission, which charged that the company illegally distributed the personal information of over 1 million children via games that were not COPPA [Children's Online Privacy Protection Act] compliant.

Playdom was charged with a $3 million penalty, and is permanently barred by the FTC from violating COPPA and misrepresenting its information practices regarding children. (source:gamasutra

3)Gamevil Acquires Cartoon Wars In First Phase Of $10M Investment

by Frank Cifaldi

Korean mobile game publisher Gamevil has announced a new initiative to invest $10 million in partnerships with external developers to broaden its lineup, starting with the acquisition of Cartoon Wars.

According to the company, the acquisition gives Gamevil the exclusive publishing and partial intellectual property rights to Ganawoo Choi’s series of popular Cartoon Wars mobile games, including the original, its sequel, and spin-off Cartoon Wars Gunner.

The $10 million investment fund, which is internally-sourced, will be used for “various forms of partnerships with external developers” to strengthen both its catalog and its global reach.

“As the market expands with smartphones at its center, partnering with promising and exceptional external developers has become more important,” said Gamevil CFO Yong Kuk Lee. “By working together with these creative developers and combining Gamevil’s understanding of the global smartphone game market, we will carve out success and growth for everyone involved.”

South Korea-based Gamevil, which publishes popular games that include Zenonia and Air Penguin, is coming off of a strong first quarter that saw around $2.3 million in profits, with an operating profit ratio of more than 40 percent. (source:gamasutra

4)App revenues to rise by 92% to $14.1 billion in 2012 as monetisation methods expand

by Keith Andrew

The headline figure of 183 billion apps downloaded annually by 2015 might have drawn attention to IDC’s latest report on the mobile market, but it was the firm’s assessment that in-app purchases (IAP) would be behind such growth that offered the most interest.

That’s a stance Canalys supports, with the firm’s projection of $14.1 billion of direct revenue from app stores in 2012 owing much to the new forms of monetisation employed by developers.

As detailed in the firm’s latest report, both IAPs and subscription models will have a major role to play in generating revenue alongside the sale of the apps themselves in the coming years.

Getting carried away

Canalys claims its revenue projection for 2012 will represent a rise of 92 percent over the $7.3 billion generated in 2011.

What’s more, said growth will continue, reaching $36.7 billion in 2015. That represents a four year compound annual growth rate of just under 50 percent.(source:pocketgamer

5)Nokia’s Ovi Store hits 6 million daily downloads

By: Dusan Belic

Although it’s far from commanding a dominant market share in the U.S., Nokia’s Ovi Store keeps growing like crazy. According to this post on Nokia Developer’s portal, more than 300,000 new Nokia accounts are created daily, and consumers are downloading 6 million mobile apps and content every day!

In total, there are about 48,000 apps in the Ovi Store with almost 1,000 new added every week. And it’s not just the Symbian users who download apps and mobile content — Series 40 device (feature phone) owners are jumping on board as well, with the number of downloads coming from that group growing 35% in the last two months, accounting for about a quarter of all downloads.

By the end of May 2011, more than 170 developers had each exceeded 1 million downloads on Ovi Store, among which – 15 companies had total downloads in the 10 million to 20 million range each, 5 companies were in the 20 million to 30 million range, and one company (Offscreen Technologies) had more than 72 million total downloads.

Finally, Nokia reminds us that Ovi Store supports operator billing, which now works with 121 operators across 42 countries. Recent additions to operator billing include Chile with Claro – AMX, Portugal with Vodafone, Hong Kong with five operators (CSL, 3HK, SMV, PCCW and CMHK), and United Arab Emirates with Etisalat…(source:intomobile

6)Angry Birds finally flies over to Windows Phone 7

Sean Ludwig

The incredibly popular Angry Birds mobile game has finally landed on the Windows Phone 7 platform. Versions of the game already run on the iPhone, Android, webOS, B&N Nook, Intel AppUp for netbooks, and the Chrome web browser.

Angry Birds is one of the most popular games in the world and has had more than 200 million downloads. The game’s developer, Rovio, has released other versions of the game like Angry Birds Rio and Angry Birds Seasons, and it even plans to expand the brand with all sorts of merchandise and a TV show.

The Windows Phone 7 version is priced at $2.99 in the U.S., which is more expensive than its iPhone and Android counterparts. The iPhone app runs for 99 cents, while the Android version is free but has advertising.

Windows Phone 7 launched back in November, and it’s taken quite some time for Angry Birds to appear on the platform. After including an unapproved Angry Birds icon on WP7 launch materials, Microsoft said the game would arrive on the OS in the spring. Apparently it’s a little late, but late is better than never when a game has lots of hungry fans.
source:venturebeat

7)GameHorizon 2011: The return per man-month from Infinity Blade is the same as Gears of War reveals Epic’s Mark Rein

by Jon Jordan

Taking a more conversation approach to the GameHorizon’s conference, Epic’s Mark Rein and Mills, of UK studio ustwo, had a fireside chat about Epic’s view on mobile gaming.

“Mobile is an important sector. Everything is going to go mobile at some point,” Rein said, when asked why the developer of such profitable titles as Gears of War would be interested in mobile.

Show us the numbers

Revealing some current numbers about its iOS debut Infinity Blade, Rein said that to-date, Epic has generated $11.2 million net from the $5.99 release.

In terms of total budget, it’s cost around $2 million, of which $400,000 has been spent post-launch supporting the game.

As a result, on the basis of return per man-month invested, Infinity Blade – developed by the 12-man team at Chair Entertainment, is comparable with Gears of War.

Still, the biggest surprise has been how much money has been generated from the game’s in-app purchases.

“Since we launched IAP in Infinity Blade, it accounts for about 45 percent of our revenue,” Rein said. “We make more money on the $20 IAP gold pack than from the $1 gold pack.”

Yet, despite the growth of the freemium market, Rein doesn’t see it as an option for games such as Infinity Blade.

“For us to make as much money from freemium IAP as we do from premium and IAP, we’d have to do 30 times the number of downloads,” Rein said.

Epic fail

Another key mobile topic on which Rein has strong views is Android.

“Android has a lot of challenges to be overcome. One is you can only download 50 MB from the Android Market,” Rein pointed out.

Infinity Blade is a 585.1 MB download, meaning the remaining 535.1 MB would have to downloaded from Epic’s servers; too expensive for the company.

Rein also had an example of fragmentation.

“We use Samsung Galaxy S as a reference Android device but when we released Epic Citadel, on one of the four US carriers, its device contained so much shovelware, it couldn’t run the demo,” Rein said.

Yet, his conclusion is that the number of devices out there means these challenges will be overcome.

“We will release on Android at some point,” he said.

Raising the price

The final point raised was the debate about whether tablet games could eventually be priced at $20-40.

“I don’t think there’s yet the power on these devices, or enough of an install base, that users would see the advantage in us spending $8 million making a game that would sell for $20,” Rein said.

The converse however is the current 99c mindset; something Epic is pushing hard against.

“People are happy to pay $10 for movies or $13 for music on their tablets so I can’t see that they wouldn’t pay more than 99c for games,” Rein said. “I don’t like people calling us worthless.”

Still, to get to a $20+ price point, he thought a game’s quality and length of average game session would have to be closer to console triple-A.

“At the moment, for Infinity Blade you only play for five minutes at a time, but I think we’ll be able to sell you an L.A. Noire-type experience you will play for hours on a tablet.” (source:pocketgamer

8)Paid App Downloads on Android Up 2% Since April, Says Chomp

By Sarah Perez

Mobile application search and discovery service Chomp just released its latest app search trends report, and tucked away in the data is promising tidbit for Android app developers to note. There has been a slight, 2% increase month-over-month in the number of paid applications downloaded on Android.

Paid Downloads Up on Android

Android still struggles with paid applications, of course. Chomp found that 95% of the downloads seen through its network were free in May, and only 5% were paid. However, that’s 5% in May vs. just 3% in April – so, a small jump up.

The company further broke down the paid app downloads by price range, and found that the group with the largest number of paid downloads is the group containing the 99 cents apps (1.7%). The next highest group was the one where apps cost $2 or less (1.5%).

The paid app with the most referrals on Chomp was Beautiful Widgets (£1.99 or about $2.87), which goes to show that Android users are still very interested in phone customization.

Overall though, the most popular category on Android is Games.

iOS Paid App Downloads Decrease

Meanwhile, iOS saw a slight decrease in downloads during the same time, but only by a negligible.(source:readwriteweb


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