Hot Five: AppLovin wants to acquire TikTok, Supercell's film and TV ambitions, and Netflix Stories cancelled

To help get you primed and ready for another week in mobile gaming, we’ve curated the biggest stories you need to know from the last seven days.

1) Pokémon TCG Pocket’s first shiny cards trigger 265% spending surge

The introduction of new shiny cards to DeNA’s Pokémon Trading Card Game Pocket saw revenue rise 265% to $7.9 million on the Shining Revelry update’s release day.

In a period of just four days, the title picked up $28m, according to Sensor Tower estimates, a rise of 307% from the same period the week prior.

2) Clash of Clans developer Supercell wants to bring top IP to film and TV

Supercell isn’t just content with making billion-dollar games – it now wants to expand its hit IP into film and TV.

The company, behind titles such as Clash of Clans, Clash Royale and Brawl Stars, is hiring for a senior film and TV development executive in LA, California, to drive development.

As a key part of the position, the job listing mentions monitoring developments in animation, live-action, streaming and traditional theatrical distribution to inform its strategy. 

3) Netflix Stories cancelled as streaming firm focuses on new games strategy

As part of sweeping changes to Netflix’s games strategy, the streaming firm has cancelled its interactive fiction app Netflix Stories.

The news was confirmed to PocketGamer.biz. The app will continue to be available for download, but no new content will be added.

Netflix remains in the interactive fiction space, however. It has partnered with Series Entertainment and Pixelberry for Single’s Inferno: Choices, currently available in soft launch in the Philippines.

4) London is now third-biggest hub for games industry workers worldwide

In a bold claim, analysis by Unscrambled and BOP for Games London said the UK capital is home to more than 13,700 games professionals across platforms.

That makes London the third-largest hub for game makers globally, allegedly overtaking Canada’s hotspots. The claim would also put it ahead of other global industry hubs, such as cities in China, where developers can employ thousands of staff.

London sits behind LA and San Francisco, which house 22,600 and 14,100 industry professionals, respectively.

5) AppLovin wants to partner with "undermonetised" TikTok globally

Fast-rising ad tech firm AppLovin wants to acquire TikTok’s international operations outside of China – not just in the US.

Parent company ByteDance is being forced to sell the video-sharing app in the US or go offline. AppLovin has officially expressed its interest, with CEO Adam Foroughi saying he wants to merge with TikTok globally to combine its advertising personalisation algorithm with the platform’s recommendation algorithm. 

This, he claims, will help supercharge revenue for what is currently an “undermonetised” platform.