Increasing Revenue 47%: Pokémon GO's Second In-Game Event

The second in-game event for Pokémon GO, held in November 2016, successfully generated a 47 percent increase in global revenue, yet failed to match the performance of the game’s inaugural Halloween event. While the Thanksgiving-themed event resulted in over $31 million in gross in-app purchases—yielding $22 million in net revenue—it fell significantly short of the 97 percent revenue surge observed during the October event. This analysis, based on global data from the Apple App Store and Google Play, highlights a clear disparity in player monetization between the two promotional periods.

Daily net revenue metrics further illustrate this trend, with the November event averaging $2.7 million per day compared to $1.9 million in the preceding period, a 42 percent increase. In contrast, the Halloween event saw average daily net revenue climb 96 percent, rising from $2.4 million to $4.7 million. The discrepancy suggests that the specific nature of in-game bonuses significantly influences player spending behavior.

The primary driver for this variance appears to be the utility of the rewards offered. The Halloween event provided players with extra candy, a resource directly tied to the game’s core monster-hunting and evolution mechanics. Conversely, the November event focused on double experience points, which accelerated character leveling but lacked the same direct impact on gameplay engagement. These findings indicate that future monetization strategies rely heavily on balancing player incentives with core game mechanics to maintain high levels of user spending and engagement.