Once satisfied to quietly grab some shelf space for their titles on a carrier’s deck of wireless offerings, mobile game publishers are now trying to make a little more noise.
While they may be big in the world of wireless entertainment, game developers and publishers are often unknown even to the people playing their wares. “Pure-play” mobile gaming companies Sorrent, Mforma Group, Jamdat Mobile and In-Fusio are among the top game makers in wireless, but their name recognition among typical cell-phone users is nearly nonexistent.
As mobile gaming begins to gain traction, though, many publishers are trying to raise their profiles. Jamdat was among the first to get its name in front of gamers, marketing company-branded titles like Jamdat Bowling and Jamdat Solitaire Deluxe.
Digital Bridges is taking it a few steps further. The U.K.-based publisher is set to unveil a makeover this week, taking on a new face in an effort to bring mobile gaming mainstream. The company will become I-play, touting its new image with a new logo and Web page designed to attract non-traditional gamers.
“We feel as an industry that we’re kind of on the cusp of a mass market, halfway between the early-adopter stage and becoming mainstream,” said Paul Maglione, senior vice president of publishing for I-play. “(But) we found there was a missing element, which was brand. In almost every consumer market that has evolved over the last few decades, there was one company that took (a niche market) and turned it into a mass-market thing.
“We basically said, `We want to be that company in this space.’ “
While mobile play represents just a sliver of the overall gaming market, the sheer number of platforms-i.e., mobile phones-in everyday use dwarfs the number of home gaming consoles. For wireless games to become mass market, though, players must represent a much broader demographic than the typical home gamer, a male in his mid-teens to mid-20s.
It seems the industry is already drawing a more diverse group than the at-home gaming crowd. Recent studies indicate that more than half of all mobile gamers are female, and games are being designed for users in nearly every age group. Maglione said I-play hopes to draw the attention of a wide range of wireless users with a softer image and a $5 million marketing campaign. And the publisher is developing games with more universal appeal-the first title under the new brand is “Skipping Stone,” which has had success in Asia, and other “one-thumb” play titles are expected in coming weeks.
Even as the market expands, though, the industry has much work to do to overcome some disappointing early user experiences, said Justin Siegel, vice president of publishing for publisher SkyZone Entertainment. For wireless to rival console gaming, it must bring home gamers to mobile play at the same time it courts the non-traditional gamers-and, given the shortcomings of the handset, that’s not going to happen anytime soon.
“My sense is, by and large, a lot of these games have been overhyped and under-delivered,” said Siegel. “A lot of consumers were not satisfied with the experience, certainly not hardcore gamers.”
In an effort to interact directly with the consumer, I-play is also launching an e-commerce Web site designed to draw users and simplify the game-buying process. Instead of having to find the correct icon on their phones, then scroll through a list of titles that may be completely unfamiliar, users can visit the site and access screen shots to get an idea of what the game is like.
“Everybody in the industry is trying to move that way anyway, trying to get their name out their a little more,” said David Hu, a research associate with MMetrics, a wireless data-monitoring firm. “In the wireless gaming space, from a consumer education standpoint, people are not used to recognizing developers or publishers.”
Console gaming giant Electronic Arts, which has created a high profile with big-budget ad campaigns and licensing deals, said last month it intends to dive head-first into the mobile gaming waters, pumping out as many as 20 titles this year. While EA said it recognizes the need to work with carriers, the company hopes to use its name recognition and marketing savvy to approach customers directly instead of simply handing over titles and letting carriers sell them to their subscribers.
“We really think that the platform-owner role is the right role for carriers, but, that said, I can also say that there are more routes (to access content) to consumers becoming available,” said John Batter, head of EA Mobile. “We know how to reach the consumer about a proposition for our particular interactive experience.”
The move among game-makers toward brand awareness may be indicative of what some believe is a larger trend: a shift away from a single-branded walled garden to a mobile marketplace where users interact directly with content providers. But because operators ultimately control what moves along their networks, they likely will continue to control wireless data even if they no longer “own” the customer.
“Overall, I don’t think the carriers are super happy about these third-party sites, but I think that’s just a natural progression,” said Hu. “At a certain point, I think there’s going to be a lot more content (on those sites), but I don’t think you can cut out the carrier entirely at this point.
“If you tick off the carriers entirely, if your only channel is a third-party channel, you’re not going to make it. … If you’re not on the WAP deck, you’re in trouble.”
