Mobile Entertainment

The deal signaled the start of a major reorganisation that has seen the company split its distribution and publishing activities into seperate wholly-owned units - Player X Distribution and Studio X, respectively.

It has also unveiled a new managed content portal solution called 100% Mobile, with O2 UK as the first customer.

ME sat down with Player X CEO Tony Pearce to find out more...

Broadly, what’s the rationale behind splitting the operation into two separate business units?
We’ve always been active in multiple areas, and as the service side has grown there has been a natural split between these activities, so the new branding helps us to better communicate the different sides of our business to our various stakeholders. Hence, Player X Distribution delivers aggregation, and Studio X is a games and TV/video publishing division. 

How will 100% Mobile impact operator portals?
It allows carriers to outsource editorial and merchandising and to focus on their core business. We can deliver the kind of flexibility, analysis and resource support simply not available within a network.
 
What’s the role of the operator content team if 100% Mobile does all the work?
The carriers will always own the relationship with the consumer. Through 100% their teams can focus on selecting the best content and delivering marketing support.

What new ideas will you seek to develop with 100% Mobile?
A key driver is pricing. We have partnered with Accumulate to open up what is, let’s face it, a rather static market by using as Pay Per Play or rent a game for 50p. This should work well for customers who think a fiver is too expensive. Meanwhile features such as Try Before You Buy and independent game reviews  should make decision-making easier for hesitant punters.

How many operators do you expect to adopt 100%?
We work directly with more than 140 global operators and indirectly with many more. We are initially rolling this out with O2 UK and will take this to other operators in time. Reaction has been very positive.
 
What’s the rev share for 100% Mobile – and who pays?
There’s a transactional fee per download, handled as part of Player X Distribution’s portal management services for carriers. This is about increasing ARPU not reducing the content provider’s share.
 
Will advertising targeting be improved by the 100% Mobile concept?
Absolutely. And there will be no more hunting for a puzzle game starting with W under strategy/board/puzzle/fifth page. The portal is a rich environment with product banners, animated gifs and so on to better promote each game on the portal.
 
Can publishers control the presentation of their repertoire
on 100%?
Sure. Game assets will be provided by publishers just like on carrier portals. It’s also their choice which pricing models are applied. 100% Mobile is a great tool for managing product lifecycles so it’s essential that the publishers are involved.
 
Do you expect to face objections from publishers for distributing your own content?
Content selection on 100% Mobile is made by the carriers – and by consumers who don’t care who the publisher is. Consolidation means everyone is distributing everyone’s content these days. It happens in the console industry all the time.

How can Studio X compete against the big brands and deep pockets of EA, Glu etc?
By giving customers what they want and coming up with innovative licences and IP. We’ll never compete on a roadmap basis but game for game there will always be opportunities.