G3-247 Report MOBILE & TABLET GAMING
A touchy subject Mobile and tablet usage is irrevocably changing the gaming landscape as more players than ever utilise these versatile devices for play. But while there’s lots of anecdotal evidence and, inexplicably, millions of infographics, what’s the true picture? We asked a panel of industry experts, the people creating and delivering the games and mobile platforms, how they’re shaping the market and where they see this dynamic market segment heading in the future?
At DoubleDown Casino we see significant crossover between mobile/tablet and desktop play. Our players
Smartphones and tablet devices have become a ubiqui- tous part of daily life. As a reader of this magazine, you’ll not only have both, but there’s a 29 per cent chance that you’re reading this article via a digital device. A recent study in the UK showed that Britons now spend more time using technology devices than they do sleeping. Adults spent an average of eight hours and 41 minutes per day on media devices, while the same survey showed that younger people, not unsur- prisingly, had the most advanced understanding of mobile technology – with six year olds having the same level of knowledge as the average 45 year old. When asked which form of media they would miss the most, just two per cent of those aged 16 or older said they’d feel the absence of newspapers and magazines. For a publisher, that’s either a frightening statistic, or a wake- up call. The statistics show that people are consuming content in greater volume than ever, they’re just seeking it from new sources.
Gaming faces exactly the same challenges and opportu- nities in the face of a mobile/tablet revolution, and that’s not just land-based operators vying for the attention of a smartphone-savvy younger generation, but online
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desktop play is also being squeezed by the shift to mobile and tablet play. While there’s been a lot of con- ference chatter as to the impact of mobile and tablet gaming, the broad spectrum of gaming sectors affected by this evolution of play from location-based to mobile hasn’t been charted in any detail. In order to address this, G3 has gathered the opinions of an industry panel that spans both traditional, online, social and purely digital business for their views as to the changes taking place today as a result of the influence of mobile and tablet devices on the gaming industry.
HOW MOBILE ARE PLAYERS WHEN USING THEIR DEVICES - ARE THEY ON THE MOVE OR SIMPLY CONNECTED AT HOME?
Bryan Kelly, Senior Vice-President of Technology, Bally Technologies - Feedback from our Dragonplay team (Bally acquired social casino company Dragonplay in June 2014), is ‘both’ - they use on the move, at work and home. The devices are pre- dominantly used for short sessions, when the player has a few minutes to spare, whereby they quickly con- sume gaming.
are engaged with our game daily; whether they are on the move and playing with their iOS or Android device or if they’re in the office playing via desktop. We do find players using mobile and tablet play in shorter, more frequent sessions, whereas on desktop they may play for longer periods of time. What’s really cool about our games is players can play seamlessly from device to device. Their chip balance follows them. Jim Veevaert, Vice-President of Games, DoubleDown Casino.
Players are grabbing five minutes in-between doing something else. From a Free2Play perspective, we don’t have any hard metrics right now to show that a player leaving a bricks and mortar real-money wagering loca- tion, immediately turns on their device and begins play- ing on the way home. What we are seeing is people killing time in the coffee shop, at home or on the move.
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