One of my killer trends from GDC 2011 was data.

It was something mentioned at the show by all the big social gaming companies such as Zynga, ngmoco, and Glu Mobile, because it provides immediate feedback on how well your games are doing, how people are playing them, and how much money you're making from them.

Hence, this is the ideal time for a data mining company like GamesAnalytics.

The Scottish outfit has just officially launched itself, with a mission to use real-time data analysis to improve the quality of games, as well as boosting monetisation.

Its CEO is Chris Wright, who in a previous life worked for many years as head of development at mobile publisher I-play.

Pocket Gamer: Can you explain about the background of GamesAnalytics?

Chris Wright: GamesAnalytics grew out of a belief that the industry is changing. It's moving from a product-based industry where we expect players to pay a high upfront cost, to a service industry where we provide players with a games service, which they pay for as they play either through subscription, freemium or micro payments.

It was started by two industry veterans - me from games and Mark Robinson from data mining - to bring these two industries together and make the games industry better at providing a service and understanding it's users.

Why do you think such services are so important for the game industry?

The games industry has fundamentally changed. Games are now a service, provided digitally on demand. Experiences range from casual, social Facebook games, to complex online virtual worlds and MMOs.

These games are paid for in a variety of ways, from traditional upfront payments, to subscriptions, micropayments for virtual goods and free-to-play. The key to all this is data; companies need to quickly understand and effectively respond to the massive amounts of player information they are gathering. The companies that get this right are the ones that will succeed in this new and exciting future.

Like any service, from your local shop to a major retailer understanding your customer is key. Data allows companies to better understand their customers and hopefully make more fun, rewarding and profitable games.

Can you explain how your system works in terms of the data it requires?

Games collect lots of data, every click of the mouse or touch of the screen can be recorded. This data allows the game to keep track of what players are doing and keeps online games in sync so everyone is playing within the same world. This data can be used to help understand what is going on, how players are playing and what parts of the game make money.

Our technology tracks the way each individual plays the game - people who are really enjoying the game; people that are getting stuck or frustrated; those that are spending and not spending money.

By analysing the data, our technology can predict (for example) which players are most likely to buy a specific item, spend money or become frustrated. Different people play games in different ways, by taking this approach we are able to personalise the game to each player and maximize revenue.

How universal do you think these types are in terms of different game genres and platforms?

There are some very general behaviours we can see in games - people getting fed up with a game or leaving very quickly. We also see hardcore players or those players who spend a lot on IAP, the so-called whales.

There are also lots of more specific behaviours to each game that are really interesting. You start to understand how people play the game, what gets them excited and what turns them off, and where the gameplay spikes are.

We take a very game specific approach; we are not about social games or MMOs. We look at each individual game and work out what makes it tick by how the players interact with it.

Obviously your focus is to make your clients more money, but are there more subtle ways you can help game companies?

People have never really understood why a game is successful. You make a game and release it. If it does well, that's great, but you only have to look at the number of sequels that lose the magic of the original to see we often don't understand what makes a game fun.

This is as much about understanding fun as it is about making money. In the end, they are both the same thing. A fun game that lots of people enjoy is going to be a profitable game. Better understanding helps the industry, but it has to be combined with true creativity. Analytics only tells you so much and will never create a fun game. What it can do is help you understand what is working and what is not.

Why does the real-time nature of the process matter so much?

Being able to do this in real-time - seeing what someone is doing and give them support at the right time - is the key. We talk about two key aspects, personnel and pertinent.

Personnel is that we can give you something that is directed at an individual. We treat each player as an individual rather than thinking everyone playing the game is the same.

Pertinent is about providing it at the point when the player needs it. Getting help to beat the dragon when you're already dead is a little pointless!

Are there any specific features you can bring to mobile game developers?

My background is in mobile and I still fundamentally believe that mobile games are the future. I love being able to play games anywhere, when I have a few minutes. Mobile games are going the same way as all games, they are becoming free to play, where players get to choose how much they spend and when.

Our service is even more important on mobile, where players are playing the games for short periods of time and want help and support when they are involved. This adds complexity as mobiles are not always connected and we are working on solutions to these problems.

The mobile platform by its nature is a personnel device, the games should be as personnel as the platform and that is what we are aiming to make them.

Thanks to Chris for his time.

You can find out more about GamesAnalytics via its website.