Mobile game developers optimistic about AR games and Chinese gamers - but worry about rising user acquisition and marketing costs

GUANGZHOU, China, Dec. 6, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Ever-increasing competition for the attention of mobile gamers is seen by developers as the biggest threat they face in 2018, according to the latest PocketGamer.biz Mobile Games Trends Report Autumn 2017 (https://www.mobvista.com/en/ebook/mobile-gaming-trend/?channel=en_pr_newswire), published in conjunction with Mobvista, the mobile ad platform and monetization company. The report takes the temperature of an industry which continues to grow, accounting for an increasing percentage of the global computer games market.

The report surveyed more than 300 game industry insiders around the world, including the UK, USA, Canada, the Nordic countries, India, China, Japan and South Korea.

4 key findings of the report include:

• Despite the increased competition for consumers' attention, a higher number of developers expect to increase their profit margins in 2017/2018 (37.6% for 2017 vs 31.4% for 2016)
• The majority - 63.2% - of developers and publishers said rising user acquisition costs were a threat to their business
• Half of respondents see the growth of gaming emerging markets (Brazil, Russia, India, China, etc) as the biggest opportunity in the coming year
• 48.8% of respondents believe that Augmented Reality games will be a significant opportunity. However, only 22% felt the same way about Virtual Reality

Robin Duan, CEO and founder of Mobvista commented: "It's never been more difficult to launch a mobile game. Yet, the potential rewards have also never been greater. Trying to acquire and retain players is a challenge we see many developers facing, but advances with mobile advertising help make it easier and more engaging to not only acquire users, but also increase monetization."

According to games market intelligence firm Newzoo, the mobile gaming sector is set to be worth $46.1 billion in 2017 - up from $3.9 billion in 2007, according to Gartner.

The report, which can be accessed on Mobvista's website (https://www.mobvista.com/en/ebook/mobile-gaming-trend/?channel=en_pr_newswire) explores:

• Mobile game developer demographics
• Game developer insight to projects, budgets and revenue
• Business trends and mobile game market outlook
• Trends for the next 12 months
• The impact of mobile ad fraud

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