Library

market-analysis monetization advertising+1

FY2024 Presentation Material

CyberAgent achieved record consolidated sales of 802.9 billion yen in fiscal year 2024, representing an 11.5% year-over-year increase, while operating profit surged 70.4% to 41.8 billion yen. This performance marks a significant recovery for the Game business, which returned to growth for the first time in three years, and a narrowing of losses within the Media segment. The company’s strategic focus on operational efficiency through proprietary generative AI models and the expansion of its intellectual property portfolio drove these results. Projections for fiscal year 2025 suggest continued momentum, with a forecasted 29.3% increase in net income and a planned dividend hike to 17 yen. The Game business remains a primary profit driver, generating 195.9 billion yen in annual sales and a 34.6% increase in operating profit. Success was largely attributed to the sustained popularity of the Umamusume: Pretty Derby franchise and the launch of five new titles. Simultaneously, the Media segment, anchored by ABEMA, reached a record 30.29 million weekly active users and grew sales by 22.4%. To enhance monetization, the segment is transitioning to a tiered pricing model for ABEMA Premium and leveraging group-wide synergies to develop original IPs across anime, film, and gaming. The Internet Advertisement segment improved margins by integrating AI into its operations, contributing to the overall stability of the group. While fourth-quarter operating income saw a more modest 5.7% increase due to ongoing investments in social infrastructure and long-term profitability, the broader outlook remains positive. Future growth is expected to be supported by a robust pipeline of upcoming titles, including Chiikawa Pocket, and the continued evolution of the company’s media ecosystem into a sustainable, diversified entertainment platform.

CyberAgentOct 2024

market-analysis advertising southeast-asia+1

Insights into Marketing Trends in Southeast Asian Mobile Games in 2024

The Southeast Asian mobile gaming market in 2024 is characterized by high advertiser activity and a strategic shift toward video-centric marketing. Data collected between January and August 2024 reveals a monthly average of over 20,000 active advertisers in the region, representing a 9.5% year-over-year increase. While the proportion of new advertisers remained stable at approximately 3.7%, a significant surge occurred in June, where new game advertisers reached 8.5% of the total market. Geographically, Indonesia leads the region in the volume of monthly advertisers with 12.3K, surpassing major markets like Japan and South Korea. However, Thailand remains the most intensive in terms of content volume, serving as the only country in the region to exceed 100 monthly creatives per advertiser. From a platform perspective, Android dominates the landscape, accounting for over 70% of advertisers in markets like Indonesia, though iOS users see a higher proportion of image-based creatives. Genre analysis indicates that while casual games maintain the largest share of advertisers at 28.4%, Role-Playing Games (RPGs) are the most aggressive marketers. RPGs account for 16% of total creatives, a figure significantly higher than the global average. Strategy games (SLGs) lead in format innovation, with 76.5% of their ads utilizing video. Across all genres, video is the dominant medium, making up nearly 70% of all creatives, with a growing trend toward using local influencers, live-action footage, and "mini-game" playables to drive engagement. The findings are based on sampling from SocialPeta’s database of 1.6 billion ad creatives across 70 global channels. The methodology combines statistical forecasting with desk research to track advertising intelligence across Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, the Philippines, and Cambodia. Findings suggest that successful regional campaigns increasingly rely on localized content, such as Thai celebrity endorsements and TikTok-inspired audio synchronization, to navigate the fierce competition in the Southeast Asian media-buying landscape.

SocialPetaOct 2024

market-analysis advertising japan

3Q FY2024 Presentation Material

CyberAgent demonstrated significant financial momentum during the third quarter of fiscal year 2024, characterized by a 10.9% year-over-year increase in consolidated sales to 190.3 billion yen and a nearly fivefold surge in operating income to 8.5 billion yen. This robust performance, primarily driven by a resurgence in the gaming sector and continued expansion in digital media, prompted an upward revision of the full-year operating income forecast to 41 billion yen. The results reflect a successful stabilization of core business pillars and a strategic pivot toward high-growth intellectual properties and cross-media monetization. The Game business served as a primary growth engine, recording 38.8 billion yen in sales and a return to profitability with 5.1 billion yen in operating income. This recovery was fueled by the successful May 2024 launch of Gakuen iDOLM@STER and the sustained performance of established franchises like Umamusume: Pretty Derby. Simultaneously, the Media segment achieved record engagement levels, with ABEMA reaching 27.4 million weekly active users in June 2024. This growth is supported by a strategic focus on original IP ownership, exemplified by the acquisition of Nitro Plus and the development of creative infrastructure like the Manga Apartment VUY project. Looking ahead, the corporate strategy emphasizes a fusion of technology and creativity to scale operations globally. By leveraging a diverse portfolio that includes major titles such as Final Fantasy VII Ever Crisis and Jujutsu Kaisen Phantom Parade alongside its dominant internet advertising business, the firm aims to capitalize on digital transformation trends. The transition toward a merit-based corporate structure and an expanded creative ecosystem underscores a long-term commitment to maintaining a competitive edge in the international entertainment and advertising markets.

CyberAgentJul 2024

Insights into Global Mobile Game Marketing & Ad Spend Trends for H1 2024

The global mobile gaming landscape in the first half of 2024 is defined by a strategic pivot toward hybrid-casual and subscription-based models as developers seek stable revenue and higher user lifetime value. This transition is supported by the rapid expansion of mini-games on super-apps, currently engaging approximately 650 million players, and the integration of 5G and AI-driven personalization. Marketing success now hinges on the synergy between App Store Optimization and paid search, alongside the use of predictive modeling to mitigate rising acquisition costs. Rewarded playtime has emerged as a critical monetization tool, yielding eCPMs 2.7 times higher than standard formats. Market activity surged during this period, with monthly active advertisers increasing 33.7% year-over-year to exceed 55,000. Despite this influx, the intensity of individual campaigns moderated, with the average monthly creatives per advertiser falling to 105. Video remains the primary medium, accounting for 77% of ad formats, though AI-generated imagery is gaining significant traction. While Western Europe maintains the highest advertiser density, the Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan regions represent the most competitive environments. Genre-wise, casual and puzzle games dominate advertiser participation on Android, but RPGs have surpassed strategy titles in total creative volume through the aggressive use of AI-generated content. Regional performance highlights distinct growth corridors, such as Brazil’s emergence as a hub for casino games and the Middle East’s demand for localized simulation and strategy titles. Successful campaigns frequently utilize "mini-game" video ads and deliberate-failure narratives to drive conversions. High-performing titles like Legend of Mushroom and Solo Leveling: Arise demonstrate the efficacy of high-volume creative output and IP-driven TikTok marketing. Ultimately, the industry is moving toward a bifurcated strategy where Asia-Pacific markets focus on intensive pre-registration windows while Western markets prioritize long-term promotional stability.

SocialPetaJun 2024

FY2024 Presentation Material: January–March 2024

CyberAgent’s financial results for the second quarter of fiscal year 2024 reflect a period of record-breaking sales and significant profit recovery. Consolidated net sales reached 215.1 billion yen, a 10% increase year-on-year, while operating income rose 12.2% to 21.0 billion yen. This performance marks a strategic pivot toward a new growth phase, with the company successfully positioning FY2023 as its earnings floor. The game business served as a primary growth engine this quarter, with sales increasing 8.1% year-on-year to 67.1 billion yen and operating income surging 421.2% quarter-on-quarter to 18.2 billion yen. These results were driven by the successful global launch of Granblue Fantasy: Relink, which sold one million units in eleven days, and the third-anniversary events for the flagship title Uma Musume Pretty Derby. The internet advertisement business also achieved record sales of 107.3 billion yen, maintaining steady growth through the integration of generative AI tools to maximize ad effectiveness. A major milestone was achieved in the media segment, where the ABEMA streaming platform turned profitable on a quarterly basis for the first time since its investment phase began. ABEMA’s weekly active users grew to 23.64 million, supported by expanded sports programming through partnerships with DAZN and WOWOW. Across all segments, the company is leveraging technological advantages, including proprietary large language models and AI-driven production studios, to improve operational efficiency. Based on these results, the company reports strong progress toward its full-year forecasts, having already achieved over 90% of its annual operating profit target by the end of the second quarter. The strategic outlook focuses on stabilizing the game business through long-term IP management and establishing ABEMA as a permanent fixture of social infrastructure.

advertising game-publishing marketing+1

CyberAgentApr 2024

State of the Market 2023: An Annual Analysis of App Market and Advertising Activities

The 2023 market analysis evaluates global mobile advertising performance, concentrating on the two dominant operating systems, iOS and Android, and the leading social platforms that drive ad spend. Facebook and Instagram continue to command the largest share of the social advertising ecosystem, reinforcing their status as primary channels for marketers seeking broad reach and engagement across diverse audiences. Video advertising emerged as the pre‑eminent format throughout the year, registering a 16 % increase on iOS and a markedly higher 37 % rise on Android. This divergence underscores Android’s accelerating momentum in video consumption and ad adoption, while iOS maintains steady growth. Interactive ad formats also showed modest gains, with a 2.7 % uplift on iOS, indicating a gradual shift toward more engaging user experiences, though the expansion remains limited compared with video. Overall, the findings suggest that mobile video continues to dominate revenue generation, with Android delivering the strongest growth trajectory. The incremental rise in interactive formats points to emerging opportunities for richer creative solutions, yet video’s dominance will likely shape strategic allocations for the coming year. These trends highlight the importance of platform‑specific optimization and the need for advertisers to balance high‑impact video placements with exploratory interactive formats to maximize reach and performance across the mobile landscape.

market-analysis advertising global+1

AppticaMar 2024

Q1 2024 Digital Market Index

In the first quarter of 2024, the mobile gaming market showed a clear shift away from hyper‑casual titles, which experienced a year‑over‑year decline of more than ten percent across all major platforms. At the same time, niche sub‑genres—particularly those emphasizing deeper mechanics, social interaction, and regional cultural themes—registered modest growth, indicating that players are gravitating toward more differentiated experiences. Revenue concentration continued to favor the top‑tier publishers, whose combined share of global digital game sales rose to just over 45 percent, while mid‑size and indie developers struggled to maintain market visibility amid rising user acquisition costs. Geographically, North America and Western Europe together accounted for roughly 38 percent of total spend, but the fastest growth rates were observed in Southeast Asia and Latin America, where mobile penetration and improved payment infrastructure drove double‑digit increases in both downloads and in‑app purchases. The overall market size reached $23.7 billion in Q1, representing a 4.2 percent increase from the same period a year earlier, with the majority of the uplift coming from subscription‑based models and live‑ops monetisation strategies. The data also highlighted a maturing ad‑tech ecosystem: programmatic video ads delivered higher eCPMs than traditional interstitials, while rewarded ads maintained the strongest user retention metrics. However, ad fraud remained a concern, with industry‑wide estimates suggesting that up to 7 percent of ad impressions were non‑genuine, prompting publishers to invest more heavily in verification tools. These trends suggest that the digital gaming landscape is moving toward higher‑value, more engaged user bases, with regional diversification and sophisticated monetisation approaches shaping the next phase of growth.

market-analysis advertising mobile+1

Sensor TowerMar 2024

market-analysis market-forecast advertising+1

1Q FY2024 Presentation Material: October to December 2023

CyberAgent’s financial results for the first quarter of fiscal year 2024, covering October to December 2023, demonstrate a strong start across its three primary business segments: Internet Advertisement, Game, and Media. Consolidated net sales reached 193.0 billion yen, a 15.2% increase year-over-year, while operating income rose to 6.2 billion yen, reversing a loss from the same period the previous year. This performance aligns with the strategic goal of establishing fiscal year 2023 as a profit trough and entering a new growth phase. The Internet Advertisement business remains the primary revenue driver, generating 105.3 billion yen in sales (up 10.1% YoY) with an improving operating profit margin of 5.4%. The Game business saw a recovery in sales to 45.0 billion yen (up 10.1% YoY) driven by the successful launch of Jujutsu Kaisen Phantom Parade, though operating profit declined 32.9% YoY to 3.4 billion yen. The Media business, centered on ABEMA, significantly reduced its operating losses to 0.9 billion yen, an 8.3 billion yen improvement over the previous year, supported by a 27.8% increase in sales and the growth of Weekly Active Users to over 20 million during peak periods. Geographically focused on the Japanese market with expanding digital interests, the data indicates that the company is on track to meet its full-year forecast of 750 billion yen in sales and 30 billion yen in operating profit. Methodology involves consolidated financial reporting of internal business units and user engagement metrics for digital platforms. The long-term strategy emphasizes the digital shift of industries through AI and DX in advertising, the creation of high-quality global game titles, and the evolution of ABEMA into a profitable social infrastructure.

CyberAgentJan 2024

State of Performance Marketing for Videogames

The 2024 performance marketing landscape for PC and console gaming is defined by a strategic shift toward high-engagement platforms and the integration of first-party data to combat rising acquisition costs. Meta and YouTube remain the dominant forces in media planning, appearing in 75% and 44% of campaigns respectively, while Twitch has emerged as the conversion leader with a 12% success rate. This recovery period is marked by a rebound in free-to-play retention to 46% and a significant evolution in platform utility. Notably, Reddit has transformed into a high-value retention hub following an overhaul of its advertising infrastructure, and Twitter (X) continues to serve as the primary conduit for reaching the PlayStation demographic. The industry is increasingly moving toward automation and data-driven targeting to optimize creative assets and audience reach. AI-driven tools such as Google’s Performance Max and TikTok’s Performance Automation are becoming standard, while the utilization of first-party data has proven critical, yielding conversion lifts of up to 63% in Meta-based campaigns. These technological advancements are complemented by the continued growth of influencer marketing, which currently outperforms traditional ad networks with a 4.25% conversion rate and a robust 38.95% Day 7 retention rate. Despite the effectiveness of creator-led activations, the sector faces logistical hurdles regarding contracting, key distribution, and return-on-investment analysis. To mitigate these complexities, marketers are adopting sophisticated attribution tools to unify performance metrics across paid media and influencer channels. This holistic approach allows for a more precise understanding of player behavior and engagement across the global PC and console segments, ensuring that marketing spend is directed toward the most authentic and high-retention audience segments.

advertising market-analysis global+2

GamesightJan 2024

market-analysis in-game-advertising mobile+2

The State of Games Media Buying United States Spotlight

The United States mobile gaming market maintained its position as a global leader in advertising activity during the first half of 2024. While the region ranks first globally in the total volume of app advertisers, it holds the second position for ad impressions, trailing only Southeast Asia. Despite this high ranking, the market shows signs of maturation and consolidation. The number of active advertisers grew by a marginal 0.25% year-over-year, while the proportion of new advertisers entering the space saw a significant decline of 29%. Similarly, while total ad purchases increased slightly by 0.46%, the volume of new ad creatives decreased by 12%, suggesting a shift toward established players and proven assets. Shifts in genre performance and creative strategy define the current landscape. Puzzle games have overtaken Match games to claim the top spot in ad impression rankings, while the Sports and Shooting genres experienced the most rapid growth, rising six and four places respectively. Conversely, Hypercasual games saw a decline in impression share. Video ads remain the dominant creative format across all major genres, particularly in the Match category where they account for 87% of the ad mix. Playable ads remain a niche but specialized tool, utilized in 13% of Hypercasual campaigns compared to just 1% for Role-Playing Games. Campaign longevity varies significantly by genre, reflecting different monetization and retention strategies. Sports games feature the most enduring campaigns, averaging 47 days, whereas Role-Playing Game campaigns typically run for only 23.6 days. To navigate this competitive environment, publishers are increasingly moving away from pure Hypercasual models toward Hybrid-casual structures, utilizing intelligent bidding and Target ROAS strategies to balance user acquisition costs with long-term profitability. This data, collected between the second half of 2023 and the first half of 2024, indicates that success in the U.S. market now requires a data-driven approach focused on retention and optimized media buying across both major platforms and programmatic SDK networks.

MintegralJan 2024

Mobile App Trends: 2024 Edition

The mobile app industry demonstrated significant resilience throughout 2023, characterized by a global advertising spend of $362 billion and a late-year surge in installations. While the landscape faced challenges such as rising acquisition costs and evolving privacy regulations, the fintech and e-commerce sectors emerged as primary growth engines. Fintech experienced a 42% increase in installs and a 118% surge in in-app revenue, while e-commerce saw a 43% year-over-year rise in installs alongside a 34% increase in revenue. These sectors successfully optimized their acquisition strategies, with banking eCPIs falling from $2.33 to $1.37, allowing marketers to achieve rapid returns on investment within the first week of user acquisition. The gaming sector navigated a more complex trajectory, ending the year with a 2% annual decline in installs despite a notable recovery in the fourth quarter. This rebound was driven by a 7% year-over-year growth in installs and the emergence of the hybrid casual genre. Although overall gaming sessions dipped, specific subverticals like racing and simulation saw dramatic install spikes of 61% and 53%, respectively. Global gaming stickiness remained stable at 20%, and high-engagement genres like RPG and adventure continued to command strong lifetime value, even as broader retention rates across the mobile ecosystem faced downward pressure. Future industry success depends on the strategic integration of artificial intelligence and predictive analytics to enhance personalization and automate complex workflows. To achieve sustained growth in 2024 and beyond, developers must diversify their media mixes by expanding into emerging channels like Connected TV and adopting holistic measurement frameworks. By combining incrementality testing with media mix modeling, stakeholders can better navigate the shift toward privacy-centric marketing while capitalizing on the high-potential returns offered by the global mobile marketplace.

market-analysis marketing advertising+2

AdjustJan 2024

Insight into 2024 Marketing Trends for Japanese Mobile Games

The Japanese mobile gaming market is characterized by a conservative but highly specialized marketing landscape, where local companies maintain a dominant revenue position. Analysis of data from 2023 reveals that Japan’s share of advertisers using new creatives (62.23%) and the overall volume of new creatives (29.77%) sit significantly below global averages. Despite this lower turnover, the market remains lucrative, with Japanese firms controlling nine of the top ten spots for revenue on the App Store. Chinese developers represent the most significant foreign presence, accounting for 30% of the top 100 grossing titles. Marketing strategies in the region rely heavily on cultural integration and long-term player retention. Key findings highlight the importance of pre-registration campaigns, which utilize tiered rewards ranging from in-game currency to physical prizes like consoles. Anniversary and half-anniversary celebrations are critical milestones used to reactivate lapsed users and boost revenue through exclusive content. Furthermore, cross-industry collaborations with popular anime, film, and music IPs serve as a primary driver for market expansion and community engagement. Creative trends are distinctively localized, featuring "over-exposure" visual filters, text-heavy layouts, and manga-style storyboards. Video ads are the dominant format, making up nearly 70% of mobile game creatives. Recent successful campaigns, such as those for Legend of Mushroom and Saint Seiya: Legend of Justice, demonstrate the effectiveness of using local celebrity endorsements, nostalgic IP elements, and AI-generated imagery to target specific demographics like the "Otaku" segment. The data, compiled by SocialPeta, draws from a global database of 1.4 billion ad creatives across 70 countries and 70 ad channels, including Facebook, TikTok, and YouTube. While casual and puzzle games lead in advertiser volume, RPGs remain the highest-grossing genre, accounting for 32% of the top 100 revenue-generating games on Google Play.

SocialPetaJan 2024

market-analysis market-forecast advertising+1

FY 2023 Presentation Material

CyberAgent achieved record consolidated sales of 720.2 billion yen in fiscal year 2023, marking twenty-six consecutive years of growth despite a 64.5% decline in operating profit to 24.5 billion yen. This financial divergence was primarily driven by the natural slowdown of the major hit title Uma Musume Pretty Derby, which caused the gaming segment to experience a 21.6% drop in sales and a 62.5% decrease in profit. However, the fourth quarter showed signs of recovery with a 25.4% sequential increase in gaming revenue following the successful launch of Final Fantasy VII Ever Crisis. The media segment, centered on the ABEMA platform, demonstrated significant momentum by narrowing its operating losses and reaching nearly 18.8 million weekly active users. ABEMA’s 25.9% year-over-year growth was bolstered by the expansion of high-growth related businesses such as WINTICKET, which saw transaction volumes increase by 30%. Meanwhile, the internet advertisement business maintained steady performance, supported by strategic investments in digital transformation and the aggressive implementation of generative AI to enhance production efficiency. Looking toward fiscal year 2024, the strategic focus shifts toward stabilizing the gaming portfolio through global console releases for the Granblue Fantasy franchise and the launch of at least three new titles. The company forecasts a recovery in operating profit to 30 billion yen, underpinned by the continued monetization of ABEMA and the opening of a major AI-driven production studio. By prioritizing the longevity of high-quality intellectual properties and leveraging AI across all business units, the organization aims to balance long-term media investments with the high-margin potential of its gaming and advertising sectors.

CyberAgentNov 2023

Insights into Marketing Trends of Global Mobile Games: Q3 2023

The analysis focuses on contemporary marketing dynamics within the global mobile gaming sector, emphasizing how creative diversification and platform targeting shape user acquisition performance. In the third quarter of 2023, a leading animal‑themed strategy‑lite game launched by a major publisher introduced an extensive creative slate, deploying 6,500 distinct ad assets across major ad networks. Notably, 85 % of these assets were brand‑new, reflecting a deliberate strategy to refresh visual and messaging elements at scale. This high proportion of novel creatives aligns with broader industry observations that frequent creative turnover mitigates ad fatigue and sustains click‑through rates in highly competitive markets. The data underscores the importance of deduplication processes in large‑scale campaigns, ensuring that each impression reaches a unique audience segment while preserving measurement integrity. By tracking deduplicated impressions, the campaign achieved a more accurate assessment of reach and cost efficiency, revealing that fresh creative assets can improve cost‑per‑install (CPI) benchmarks by up to 12 % compared with static creative pools. These findings suggest that investment in creative production pipelines and rapid iteration cycles yields measurable returns, especially for mid‑core titles competing for attention in saturated regions such as North America, Europe, and Southeast Asia. Overall, the evidence points to a shifting paradigm where creative volume and novelty become critical levers for growth in the mobile gaming ecosystem. Publishers that integrate systematic creative testing, maintain high rates of new asset introduction, and employ rigorous deduplication are better positioned to optimize acquisition spend, extend campaign longevity, and capture incremental market share across diverse geographic territories during the 2023 fiscal period.

SocialPetaSept 2023

market-analysis advertising japan

3Q FY2023 Presentation Material

The third quarter of fiscal year 2023 represents a transitional period characterized by a significant contraction in profitability despite stable consolidated sales of 171.7 billion yen. This financial performance was primarily impacted by the Game business, which experienced a 27% year-over-year decline in sales and a shift into operating losses as flagship titles like Uma Musume Pretty Derby moved into a post-peak stability phase. These headwinds necessitated a downward revision of the full-year operating profit forecast to 25 billion yen, signaling that the current fiscal year serves as an earnings floor for the organization. In contrast to the volatility in gaming, the Internet Advertisement and Media segments demonstrated resilience and growth. The advertising division achieved record quarterly sales exceeding 100 billion yen, while the Media segment, anchored by ABEMA, narrowed its operating losses through a 13.1% increase in sales. ABEMA reached a milestone of over 20 million weekly active users, supported by a 1.3x surge in WINTICKET transaction volumes. Strategic expansion into the anime musical space via the acquisition of Nelke Planning further underscores an intent to diversify content revenue streams and strengthen the broader media ecosystem. Looking toward fiscal year 2024 and beyond, the strategic focus shifts toward a recovery phase driven by technological innovation and a robust product pipeline. Investments in generative AI, including the development of a proprietary Japanese Large Language Model, are intended to enhance operational efficiency and digital transformation. Furthermore, the upcoming release of high-profile titles such as Final Fantasy VII Ever Crisis and Jujutsu Kaisen Phantom Parade is expected to revitalize the Game business. By leveraging talent management and global expansion initiatives, the group aims to return to a trajectory of sustainable earnings growth.

CyberAgentJul 2023

Insights into Marketing Trends of Global Mobile Games

Global mobile game marketing reached a pivotal turning point in the second quarter of 2023, characterized by a record-breaking surge in creative volume. Over 9.3 million new creatives entered the market, representing nearly three-quarters of all active advertisements. While casual games maintained the largest share of advertisers at over 30%, RPG and Casino genres experienced the most aggressive growth in creative output. Geographically, Southeast Asia emerged as a primary hub for advertising density, leading the world in monthly creatives per advertiser, while the Middle East solidified its status as a high-growth market where strategy games command significant revenue shares. The industry is increasingly adopting "Casual + X" hybrid models and integrating AI-generated content, ASMR, and short-video memes to mitigate rising user acquisition costs. Financial data reveals a stark contrast in installation costs between platforms, with iOS casual game installs costing $2.23 compared to $0.63 on Android, yet both platforms achieved a comparable seven-day return on ad spend of approximately 7.7%. This parity suggests that despite higher upfront costs, the quality of users on premium platforms remains consistent with broader market performance. Market leaders like Honkai: Star Rail and MONOPOLY GO! demonstrated the efficacy of high-frequency creative refreshes, with new assets comprising over 60% of their total advertising portfolios. These titles leveraged distinct psychological hooks, ranging from influencer-driven user-generated content to social-casual mechanics, to achieve rapid global penetration. Notably, these aggressive marketing strategies allowed Honkai: Star Rail to surpass Genshin Impact in overseas revenue during the quarter, signaling a shift toward more dynamic, content-heavy advertising cycles across the global mobile landscape.

SocialPetaJun 2023

2Q FY2023 Presentation Material: January to March 2023

CyberAgent achieved record-high quarterly consolidated sales of 195.6 billion yen during the second quarter of fiscal year 2023, representing a period of significant operational recovery and strategic growth. While consolidated operating profit experienced a year-over-year decline to 18.7 billion yen, the company realized a substantial quarter-on-quarter profit surge of 191.7% within its Game business. This financial rebound was primarily driven by high-performing anniversary events for flagship titles such as Uma Musume Pretty Derby and Granblue Fantasy, alongside a robust portfolio of intellectual property managed through subsidiaries like Cygames and strategic partnerships with major industry players including Bandai Namco and SEGA. The Media segment, centered on the ABEMA streaming platform, demonstrated a 22.4% year-over-year revenue increase to 33.4 billion yen. This growth was supported by a sustained expansion of the user base, with weekly active users remaining 1.5 times higher than levels recorded prior to the FIFA World Cup. Consequently, the Media segment significantly narrowed its operating losses to 0.5 billion yen. Simultaneously, the WINTICKET betting platform expanded its market share to 40%, further diversifying the company’s revenue streams. Looking toward the remainder of the fiscal year, the company remains positioned to meet its full-year sales forecast of 720 billion yen. Future growth strategies focus on long-term monetization through the release of high-profile titles like Final Fantasy VII Ever Crisis and the continued scaling of the Internet Advertisement business. By leveraging a mix of proprietary ownership and collaborative development, the company maintains a stable trajectory across its core gaming, media, and advertising segments within the Japanese market.

market-analysis advertising marketing+1

CyberAgentApr 2023

The Mobile Economy and Digital Ad Space in 2022 and Beyond: An Analysis of the Global Trends Shaping the Mobile and Digital Advertising Industry

This analysis examines the global mobile economy and digital advertising landscape throughout 2022 and into early 2023, utilizing proprietary market intelligence data from the App Store and Google Play. While global app installs have slowed following the initial pandemic surge, they remain significantly above 2019 levels. Mobile games continue to be the primary driver of downloads globally, exceeding 50 billion installs in 2022, though the utilities category has recently emerged as a significant growth leader, particularly in emerging markets like India. A major shift occurred in 2022 as global consumer spending on mobile games declined for the first time, falling to $79 billion. This downturn was particularly pronounced on Android devices, which saw a 7 percent revenue drop driven by high inflation and the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions. Japan experienced the most significant contraction, with game revenue falling by $3.2 billion. Conversely, the entertainment category has become a primary engine for revenue growth, with spending on apps like TikTok, HBO Max, and Disney+ reaching record highs. In the United States, entertainment spending doubled compared to 2019 levels, while in Japan, a manga reader app became the top-grossing title for the first time, displacing traditional gaming leaders. The digital advertising sector reached $28 billion across North America and major European markets in the fourth quarter of 2022. While established platforms like Facebook maintain the largest market share, TikTok has emerged as the fastest-growing ad channel, recording a 60 percent quarterly increase in U.S. ad spend. Facing headwinds from Apple’s privacy changes and reduced marketing budgets, many developers are pivoting toward subscription models and diversified monetization strategies. Looking forward, the reopening of China and the high smartphone penetration growth in Africa are identified as critical factors for the next phase of global mobile adoption.

market-analysis advertising global+1

Sensor TowerMar 2023