94 posts and columns on mobile games
News Byte
QuizUp Creator Plain Vanilla Games Raises Another $22 Million
On top of a $1.2 million seed round, a $2.5 million Series A and then a $2 million extension to that Series A, Plain Vanilla Games has just raised another bundle of money for its mobile trivia game QuizUp: A $22 million Series B, led by Sequoia Capital. The company’s previous investors, including Tencent Holdings, also participated in the round. The app now has five million active users, according to a press release.
Despite Free-to-Play Explosion, Apple Puts Spotlight on Paid Games
Candy Crush can fend for itself.2013 Was a Huge Year for Android Gaming
And paid apps on both Android and iOS are falling deeper into obscurity.Benchmark’s Mitch Lasky on App Discovery, Distribution and the Power of Chat Networks
The successful games investor chats about, well, chat.News Byte
Fitness-Gaming Device Goji Play Officially Goes on Sale
Goji Play, the mobile-gaming-meets-cardio-fitness device first announced in July, officially goes on sale today. The product underwent a soft launch in October, by way of a partnership with MyFitnessPal. A Goji Play kit costs $100, includes an activity tracker and Bluetooth-connected game controllers designed for exercise machines, and supports 12 iOS games at launch, with more games and Android support planned for next year.Voices
How Japan Is Winning in Mobile Games
Better than any other country, Japan’s mobile game makers have cracked the revenue code despite having few world-wide megahits. The secret: an industry that is constantly experimenting with new ways to master the psychology of mobile payments.News Byte
Kontagent and PlayHaven Announce Merger, Will Join Player Data and Monetization Products
Mobile app analytics platform Kontagent and business engine PlayHaven will merge, the two companies announced today, with PlayHaven’s ex-CEO Andy Yang at the helm of the combined companies, and Kontagent’s ex-CEO Josh Williams becoming CTO and chairman of the board. In an interview, Yang said the decision was spurred by an “extremely fragmented” mobile B2B market and overlap between the companies’ customers. Over time, Kontagent-PlayHaven will integrate the two companies’ products into one suite.News Byte
Japan Overtakes U.S. in Apple/Google App Store Revenue
Japan is now the top country worldwide in revenue from Apple’s App Store and Google Play, according to a new report from App Annie. The app analytics company attributed the surprising shift to rapid smartphone adoption over the past year in Japan — where feature phones have held on for longer — and explosive growth in Google Play spending, outpacing global trends due to the availability of carrier billing as an alternative to credit cards.Toca Boca CEO Bjorn Jeffery: Adults Don’t Understand How Kids Play
Well, most of them, anyway.News Byte