FEATURE: MoMinis talks to GetJar about apps

This is the latest of a series of articles from MoMinis to coincide with the launch of its $15,000 Mobile Game Development Contest – GameCast 2011. Find out more about the contest here.

How does GetJar work?

We allow developers to upload and promote apps for platforms including Android, Blackberry, iPhone, Java and Symbian. GetJar then distributes these apps free to users based on their device. We have over 150,000 available.

How do you define success in a game or app?

The initial indicator is the amount of installs that the app accumulates. But we also like to see repeated use of an app rather than apps downloaded for one time use, giving developers a greater opportunity for monetisation.

What is the demographic of your target audience?

Mostly men aged 18 to 34 years-old. We reach consumers in over 190 countries, who generally browse our store while at school or home.

How do you help developers to promote their games?

We have several tools available. The APP IT! link is a direct link to the developer’s app page for fast and easy download. We also have AppVertise, a service that lets developers bid for premium placement of their apps within GetJar. Developers can bid for premium placement but only actually pay for the downloads that they receive. Bids can be targeted by handset, platform, country or even carrier.

How can a game become popular through GetJar?

A great example is Angry Birds. Angry Birds launched with us in December 2009 and received over one million downloads just in the first day. Through a combination of premium placement, PR, use of the APP IT! link and social media posts from the Rovio and GetJar marketing teams, this Android game became popular overnight.

How can games earn revenue through your store?

We always encourage developers to monetise their apps – and GetJar doesn’t take any of this revenue. They can make money in two main ways: the first is in-app ads, and the second is in-app billing. We’re happy for developers to integrate the billing SDK of third party billing providers like Boku, Zong, Billing Revolution and others to charge for their apps. Again, developers keep 100 per cent of the revenue earned (less transaction costs from the third party and carriers).

Which devices and platforms generate the best revenue for the developer on GetJar?

There’s no particular platform that blows the others out of the water in terms of revenues. We encourage developers to build apps for several platforms to reach the most users. However, Android has shown a tremendous amount of growth the past six to 12 months. We also encourage developers to develop for mobile web in order to reach a wider audience.

What do you think consumers look most for in games?

Uniqueness is a huge selling point. Users also look for engaging gameplay, ease of controls, and a fast learning curve in the game. Games that are well designed, attractive, easy to pick up but difficult to master have the longest lifetimes on GetJar.

What are the top three tips you’d give the GameCast Contest 2011 developers in order to make a high quality game?

It’s all about quality, and developers can achieve this by doing three things:

• Extensive testing – Test your game on all of the devices that the game will be available on with all target audiences.
• Don’t skimp on appearance – Users will enjoy the game more and continue to play if the visuals are appealing and easy on the eyes.
• Vary game-play times – To attract the most users, a game should be created in a way that it can be played for an hour during class or in five minutes waiting for the bus.

What is the most popular genre on your store?

Games followed by Social Messaging, Productivity and Entertainment.

Are casual games popular?

Yes, we find that casual games are unique in that they can reach users of all ages and background.

What types of games would you like to see coming from GameCast Contest 2011?

Creativity is key, we love seeing games that are different to what we’ve seen before.

How will you promote the winning games of the GameCast Contest 2011?

By promoting their game with premium placement and social media promotion. We want to do the best we can to support these developers in becoming successful and finding a home on GetJar.

MoMinis has launched its GameCast 2011 Mobile Game Development Contest in collaboration with GetJar, SlideMe and Mobile-ent.biz. You can sign up here.

MoMinis offers a free, downloadable game engine for 2D casual games that instantly operate on hundreds of mobile devices across multiple platforms such as Android, Blackberry, Symbian and J2ME. It is intended for developers with varying levels of expertise from game designers, PC developers, flash developers, mobile developers to game studios and can be downloaded at dev.mominis.com.