Inside Asian Gaming

JUNE 2018 INSIDE ASIAN GAMING 27 with operating an online casino site, working with a good social casino platform makes a lot of sense. The most popular games are slots, bingo and poker which are easily played on mobile devices. Over the past couple of years there has been a definite and pronounced shift to mobile platforms. This reflects a move away from PC-based platforms where social media giant Facebook, which in 2012 and 2013 was estimated to have 59% market share, today has an estimated 23% market share. Mobile technology today features fantastic graphics with great sound quality, which make the games all the more engaging and at the end of the day is what publishers are looking for. Sticky games with high entertainment value are what it is all about and publishers do not have to reinvent new games to meet these goals. Eager to build and promote their brands, savvy land-based casino companies have devoted significant amounts of capital to get into the social sphere as they recognize the branding opportunities, excellent crossover promotions and the opportunity to grow their databases. In terms of game development, over the past five years there have in fact been few new game innovations or significant game upgrades. After all, the core basics of a slot, bingo or poker game are already there. Slotomania, although the oldest social slot game on the market, is still the most popular offering today with more than 20 million likes on Facebook. In terms of publishers, Playtika remains the largest social casino publisher and the most popular of the social casino portals with around 29% market share, closely followed by Double Down and Scientific Games at COLUMNISTS Aristocrat’s Heart of Vegas app under its Product Madness social casino brand utilizes the IAP revenue model.