User Acquisition reports and market data
Documents
How to Target the Next Billion New Users Coming to Google Play - Mohsin Ali, Hazel Mobile.
Hazel Mobile, a mobile game and application development company, outlines a strategic framework for capturing the next billion users on the Google Play Store.
- Prioritize small application file sizes as a primary competitive advantage to ensure accessibility and scalability in emerging markets like India, Indonesia, Turkey, and Brazil.
- Adopt a four-stage product lifecycle—market analysis, development, testing, and full-scale launch—utilizing Google Firebase and Business Intelligence to iterate based on retention and funnel data before hard launches.
- Execute a phased user acquisition strategy by starting with install-based campaigns to build volume, then transitioning to action-based and ROAS-focused campaigns as the product matures.
PGC Live Special w/ John Wright: Hybrid casual is a stepping stone! Quality over quantity
The mobile gaming industry is undergoing a fundamental transition as studios move away from the high-volume, rapid-prototyping model of hyper-casual gaming toward the more sustainable, long-term potential of hybrid-casual titles.
- Hybrid casual games now require a more robust development process than hypercasual, shifting from rapid three-day prototypes to a 2–3 month timeline for a Minimum Viable Product (MVP).
- Commercial success in the current market is defined by long-term retention rather than high initial IPM or CPI, with a target Day 7 retention of 14–16% and Day 30 retention of 8–10%.
- The industry is seeing a shift toward PC gaming for free-to-play titles, as it offers easier mediation setups, fewer 'walled gardens' than mobile, and more efficient private auction/pre-bid processes.
Mega Studio’s Adam Jaffe On The Impressive Benefits Of Incentivised Traffic
Incentivized traffic has transitioned from a low-quality acquisition tactic into a sophisticated, high-performance channel capable of delivering retention rates 40% higher than non-incentivized cohorts.
- Incentivized traffic can drive retention rates that are 40% higher than non-incentivized users by creating a 'railed environment' where developers can guide players through specific, high-engagement paths.
- The responsibility for incentives has shifted from the game developer to the publisher or media company, which now often provides direct rewards like gift cards or vouchers to users who reach specific in-game milestones.
- Incentivized traffic serves as a critical data signal that allows developers to understand exactly why a user downloaded a game, enabling more precise benchmarking of LTV and behavioral patterns compared to organic or non-incentivized traffic.
3 life changing UA tips from 2023, how to revert ad apocalypse? Review Radar vol 3 (#95)
The mobile gaming industry is currently navigating a period of significant structural adjustment, characterized by a shift toward rapid creative iteration and the optimization of monetization stacks in response to declining ad performance.
- Regulatory and platform changes in 2023 caused eCPM drops between 15% and 45%, necessitating a shift toward more aggressive monetization and creative optimization.
- Integrating hyper-casual mini-games directly into core products helps align creative assets with gameplay, effectively reducing user churn.
- Publishers can increase total ad impressions by up to 20% by embedding placements within live-ops events that offer progression speed-ups rather than resource-based rewards.
Gamelight’s Günay Aliyeva On The AI Algorithm That Revolutionises UA
Gamelight, a mobile advertising company, utilizes a self-learning AI algorithm to optimize user acquisition (UA) for mobile game publishers.
- Gamelight’s self-learning AI algorithm optimizes user acquisition by targeting players based on granular behavioral patterns like in-app events and progression rather than traditional demographics.
- The platform can deliver up to a 4x uplift in average revenue per user (ARPU) within days of implementation.
- Gamelight captured nearly 12% of global ad spend in the match-three game genre within its first year of operation.
Apple vs Epic Special: 27% fee, new guidelines & creative solutions with workarounds
This analysis examines the recent shift in Apple’s App Store policies following the conclusion of the Apple versus Epic legal battle.
- Apple now allows external links for in-app purchases in the U.S., but imposes a 27% commission fee on these transactions to maintain revenue.
- The new policy may be more expensive than the standard 30% App Store fee because developers must also pay external payment processors an additional 3% to 6% transaction cost.
- Apple mandates 'scare screens' that warn users they are leaving the secure App Store, creating friction that developers argue significantly lowers conversion rates.
Games Marketing Predictions for 2024 with Eric Seufert
Microsoft is poised to challenge the mobile gaming duopoly in 2024 by leveraging the European Union’s Digital Markets Act to launch a proprietary mobile app store.
- Microsoft is positioned to challenge the Apple and Google mobile duopoly in 2024 by launching a proprietary app store, potentially utilizing Activision and King’s user bases to support a new advertising product.
- Official app stores will retain market dominance despite the Digital Markets Act, as high processing costs and platform-imposed friction limit the adoption of alternative in-app payment systems.
- Mobile game developers are increasingly shifting revenue to direct-to-consumer web stores to bypass platform commissions, which creates a discrepancy between public revenue data and actual industry performance.
Fluent's Matt Conlin On Game-Changing User Acquisition Trends To Watch In 2024
The mobile gaming industry is undergoing a fundamental strategic pivot in 2024, moving away from a growth-at-all-costs mentality toward a model centered on profitability, shortened payback windows, and long-term return on ad spend.
- Mobile gaming strategy in 2024 has shifted from growth-at-all-costs to a focus on profitability, shortened payback windows, and long-term return on ad spend.
- Rewarded discovery platforms are now a primary driver of sustainable growth, with users acquired through these channels being 50 percent more likely to make in-app purchases.
- Users acquired via rewarded ecosystems demonstrate a 65 percent transaction completion rate, proving their efficacy in fostering both immediate revenue and long-term retention.
The Hunt for hybrid casual, Captain Hook of Creatives, Google Apocalypse (#92)
The mobile gaming industry is undergoing a structural transformation as hyper-casual publishers pivot toward hybrid-casual models to secure long-term stability.
- Google recently implemented a major, industry-wide change to ad monetization that effectively eliminated a common publisher 'hack' used to increase ad revenue by 25% to 50%, with the policy change being applied retroactively.
- The 'hybrid casual' genre is the dominant industry trend, with Habby, Voodoo, Crazy Labs, and SayGames leading the market by blending hyper-casual accessibility with long-term engagement mechanics.
- Habby remains a significant outlier in the hybrid casual space, with Survivor.io serving as a primary template that many other developers are attempting to replicate.
Guide to Growing Chinese Gaming Apps Overseas: 2024
Chinese gaming applications continue to exert a dominant influence on the global stage, particularly within the strategy and role-playing game segments in mature markets such as the United States, Japan, and South Korea.
- Chinese publishers are maintaining global dominance in strategy and RPG segments by shifting to hyper-localized art styles, specifically manga-inspired visuals for Japan and realistic or cartoon aesthetics for Western markets.
- Generative AI is now a core operational requirement for rapid, compliant localization of ad creative, voice-overs, and marketing copy to manage high costs per install in mature markets like the U.S., Japan, and South Korea.
- High-performing user acquisition campaigns are increasingly utilizing minigames and AI-enhanced visuals to capture player attention in highly competitive environments.
AI's Everyday Evolution: The Expanding Role of Chatbots in Consumer Life
The rapid expansion of artificial intelligence chatbots is fundamentally altering consumer behavior, signaling a shift away from the long-standing dominance of traditional search engines.
- ChatGPT reached 500 million global monthly active users by early 2025, marking the fastest growth for any application in the last decade.
- In April 2025, ChatGPT experienced a 60% increase in session frequency and a 270% jump in web visits, while traditional search engine engagement declined by 3%.
- The utility of AI is shifting from technical tasks to complex personal management, with software development prompts dropping from 44% to 29% of the total share between early 2024 and 2025.
Mobile Growth and Monetization Report 2024
The 2024 mobile gaming landscape is defined by a strategic transition from volume-based user acquisition toward high-value retention and diversified monetization.
- Offerwalls significantly outperform rewarded video for non-paying users, generating $4.04 in monthly ad revenue per converter compared to $0.15 for rewarded video.
- Only 1.83% of mobile users convert to in-app purchases, but 29% of those converters become repeat buyers, with most transactions occurring within the first 30 days of installation.
- Strategic use of monthly currency sales can increase in-app purchase conversion rates by up to 46%.