Developers say lack of games with Arabic content an opportunity to expand sector

AMMAN — Jordan is “in the right direction” to become a central hub for Arab and regional game producers, developers and publishers, especially if more focus is given to producing Arabic content, sector representatives said on Saturday.

Around 800 local gamers, game developers and publishers took part in the sixth Jordan Gaming Summit, organised by the King Abdullah II Fund for Development (KAFD), in cooperation with the Gaming Lab and the Jordan Gaming Task Force at the King Hussein Business Park.

Speaking at the one-day summit, Aykut Karaalioglu, the founder and CEO of Mobile Action, which provides data and reports on app markets, said product developers should work on “localising and optimising the product” to fit local users and players. 

“If your product is not in the top 10 [search options], your app is invisible to the user,” he added.

Arabic is the fourth most commonly used language around the world, with more than 100 million Arab smartphone users, according to Hussam Hammo, the CEO of the Jordanian Tamatem Inc., which has published 40 games, with more than 35 million downloads in the Arab world.

“The biggest problem in the market is that there is no content in Arabic on the Internet in general,” he added.

Less than 1 per cent of the content on the Internet is in Arabic, according to Hammo, which motivates game publishers to start focusing on Arabic content.

 “There is a huge gap in [the Arab gaming] market… The competition is… much less than other international gaming markets. [Arab] users are hungry for games with Arabic content,” he added.

The top gaming markets, according to game developers and publishers, are the Gulf Cooperation Council countries (specifically Saudi Arabia), Levant countries (Lebanon and Jordan mainly), and Egypt and North Africa.

“We like to think that the MENA region is one… I think we should understand that the markets differ from one country to another in this region, but we have to reach a formula that works for most markets,” said Joseph Shomali, the CEO and co-founder of Play 3arabi, which focuses on multiplayer games.

Mohammad Fahmi, the founder and CEO of Babil Games, said publishing a game depends on the market and its cultural background.

“I think that each market has its own mentality, religious beliefs and culture… Whenever we want to bring in partners, we have to get in discussions on what features are in the game for [Arab] users,” he said.

The market in the region, Fahmi added, is divided in half for iOS and Android community users. “It is easier to approach users with a free-to-play game at first, since users will not pay for something they haven’t experienced yet.”

Game developers can then add in-app purchases to get the users “more engaged” in the game, he explained.

Yusour Hassan, the manager of programme and initiative at the KAFD, said the summit aimed at encouraging local talents and discussing the challenges that gamers, game producers and publishers face in the MENA region.

The gaming industry in the Kingdom includes 16 companies that employ more than 500 workers, according to the KAFD.

Article By Suzanna Goussous
Jordan Times

Video games have been a huge deal in the Middle East, since the release of the first Sony PlayStation console; the region’s gaming culture has been on the rise. Over the last five years, with the introduction of mobile gaming, the market has changed dramatically.

Users are requesting more and more games localized and culturally relevant to the region however, supply is low. The biggest problem the Middle East’s market faces is how underserved it is. There are over 60 million users in the region and less than one percent of games on the App Store and Google Play are in Arabic. According to Strategy&, the mobile games market in the region is expected to triple in size by 2020 and 60 percent of Arab users prefer Arabic content.

Arabic is also the fourth biggest language in the world with more than 400 million Arabic speakers worldwide and only 1% of games on the App Store are in Arabic.

In 2016, user penetration rates in the industry reached 21.4 percent and are expected to grow by more than 28.8 percent by 2021. Even though online PC games are still very popular, they are not expected to grow as much as mobile gaming.

To enter this untapped and up and coming market there are 4 steps to keep in mind:

• Localization

Localization is crucial! Arabs love playing games that are relevant to their own culture, beliefs and traditions. Users search and crave for games that are in Arabic and culturally relevant to their region. Even when it comes to advertising, developers and studios should keep in mind that user in the MENA region won’t tap on an ad that isn’t in relevant to their culture and interests.

• Language

Language is a fundamental key when developing mobile games for region. Arabs love playing games in Arabic and they always look for such content.

The Moron Test, a game created by DistinctDev in 2009, was a huge successful game in Europe and the US and after its release it topped charts and broke record. However, the game was never on the top 50 games in the MENA region.

Localizing the game, translating into Arabic and making it culturally relevant, made the game extremely successful in the MENA region. It topped charts and achieved more than 2.3 million downloads.

• Utilizing Social Media

The Arab region also has very high local birth rates with the bigger percent being young adults, which has led to very high smartphone and social media penetration rates.

The region has one of the highest numbers of social media users in the world therefore; using social media channels such as Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram, YouTube and Twitter are vital to boost a game.

• Find the perfect publisher

Many studios and developers don’t have the funds or the talent to localize games for the region. The expert knowledge needed to make a game successful can only come from a well-established publisher in the region.

Transylgamia, a Romania based studio, released a game called Getaway Driver which was nowhere to be found on the MENA App Store charts. However, after working an Arabic publisher, the game topped charts, received a full feature from Apple and was downloaded more than 300,000 times during its first week.

As the industry grows with very high demand for Arabic content, the possibilities to grow and monetize are endless. Arabic games have to shown to be very successful, top charts and bring in revenues. Localization and making a game culturally relevant is that edge needed to attract Arab games to downloading game, purchasing in app and keep users constantly engaged

Article By Jawanna Sawalha
Game Developer

Kochava empowers marketers to measure the previously unattributable (“organic”) installs resulting from social influencers.

Social media influencers are taking mobile by storm. They can reach tens of millions of followers in just seconds with their wit, humor and creativity. And with the rise of ad-blocking, advertisers need alternative ways to reach and engage their audiences. Brands big and small are capitalizing on the talent and audiences of social influencers and using Kochava to attribute user acquisition and quantify return on investment (ROI) from these campaigns.

Mobile analytics and attribution take center stage in tracking the installs that social influencers drive. SmartLink and data science modeling at Kochava are proven ways to measure the impact of social influencers. What was once an unattributable marketing practice is now measurable with these methods. Just ask Kochava client Tamatem, a mobile games publisher, who exclusively markets their apps on social media networks with select social influencers. Their users largely frequent social networks and primarily Instagram. Tamatem uses unique SmartLinks to track the effectiveness of social influencer campaigns. If advertisers know their audience well, they can tap into influencers on the particular social networks their users frequent.

Superstar social influencers like Kim Kardashian and Justin Bieber understandably have massive followings. Then, there are new names, such as Logan Paul, featured recently on a 60 Minutes story about social media influencers. He’s gained notoriety by posting mini comedic sketches just long enough to hold a Millennial’s attention and keep them coming back for more. Advertisers are looking for influencers like him to spark “the next big thing” trending on social media, and companies like Dunkin’ Donuts are leveraging Paul’s international appeal through his self-made mobile ads that include promotional links to the company’s app.

“Audiences respond more to an organic message. If it comes from an influencer, that’s when it sounds like it’s coming from the community.… What they’re doing is inspiring their audiences,” said Heidi Sullivan, SVP of Customer Service at Cision. Sullivan recently co-hosted a webinar on social influencers about how to connect with people like Paul.

Like social influencers, Kochava tools have a far reach. Using SmarkLinks or data science models, advertisers can attribute the installs influenced by the “tiny screen stars” of mobile. A single SmartLink redirects users to the app store or desired site and tracks all devices, iOS and Android alike. SmartLink is a way for advertisers to monitor their marketing methods and get a full picture of a campaign—whether it was an all-encompassing campaign or one specific to social influencers. With data science modeling, Kochava works with clients to determine a lookback window from when to attribute installs to a particular event where there is no tracker. It’s the only way to measure unattributed installs surrounding an event whose influence would be otherwise unknown.

While there are no hard and fast rules on how to find and utilize social influencers, they have the talent to connect with and engage an audience in a personalized setting. As the industry changes, so too must an advertiser’s tactics for reaching their desired audiences. Of note, however, the Federal Trade Commission requires that influencers include when their post is sponsored by an advertiser.

Advertisers shouldn’t expect to find social influencers across all platforms. Rather, they should be selective and establish a strong digital presence on the platforms appropriate to a product. Influencer marketing is historically an organic way to reach an audience, but it now has a measurable method with Kochava SmartLink or their data science team.

“(Identifying influencers) requires work to find them and build the relationships, but influencer marketing campaigns could provide a significant percentage of ROI—there is a payoff,” Sullivan said.

Learn more about SmartLinks here, or for more information on tracking social influencers, contact your account manager.

Article By Leslie Amadio
Kochava

AMMAN — While entrepreneurs are constantly reminded to receive feedback and listen carefully to criticism, it is important that they remain loyal to their vision of the business, established entrepreneurs said on Tuesday.

They agreed that pitching project ideas to investors and venture capital firms may not always succeed, and even if it does, funds may not meet the expectations of entrepreneurs.

Yet, trying, re-trying and learning from previous mistakes is key for success, they said at the fourth Deal Makers 2016 event, organised by Endeavour Jordan.

Mudassir Sheikha — from Pakistan, who is the co-founder and managing director of Careem — urged entrepreneurs to think of “big, meaningful and challenging” business projects in order to succeed and differentiate themselves from others, adding that meaningful businesses are not only income-generating, but are also ones that improve the lives of workers.

Careem, a ride hailing service, operates in 43 cities in 11 countries, with over 100,000 captains and over 6 million customers. The company, a $72 million investment, registers a 25 to 30 per cent monthly growth. 

He summed up his learning experience from the business over the past four years in the need to address local problems, adjusting to market needs, hiring “awesome” people whatever it takes, finding local partners and developing a clear purpose of the business.

Vision of the business 

Entrepreneurs can be swayed to change their entire business based on the critique of some more experienced entrepreneurs, said Khalil Shadid, founder of ReserveOut, adding that a suggestion to change the field of his business took him over three weeks of thinking.

He then decided to risk doing what he thought was right.

“You should always take feedback, but you have to decide,” he told an audience of entrepreneurs.

But Mohammad Shaker, co-founder of ArabiaWeather, had a different experience. The feedback he received had helped him gain a wider view and helped him improve the weather forecasting business that he started at home.

He said he often faced a difficulty in presenting his technology and science-based ideas to juries and potential investors, but once he was able to do so he was able to develop the business.  

Fundraising 

Ala Sallal, founder of Jamalon, an online bookstore, said investors turned down his initial fund request, but “persistence” helped him succeed in collecting a total of $7.5 million so far.

Hussam Hammo, CEO of Tamatem Games, urged entrepreneurs to diversify sources of funding, as it takes some investors months to reply to a funding proposal without giving entrepreneurs a clear answer.

Both Sheikha and Sallal said they had previous entrepreneurial projects that did not take off. 

The two-day event, which concluded on Tuesday, featured several one-to-one networking sessions where entrepreneurs receive live feedback on their products and services.

In addition, angel investors and venture capital firms engaged with entrepreneurs in discussions addressing investment opportunities.

Article By Dana Al Emam
Jordan Times