News

Real-money tournament platform Skillz boosts GnarBike Trials' ARPPU by $5.16

Plus 7-day retention up 27%

Real-money tournament platform Skillz boosts GnarBike Trials' ARPPU by $5.16
It hit the headlines thanks to its hook-up with Glu Mobile, but Skillz has been live for some time.

The start-up provides a platform which developers can integrate into their Android games and which offers US players the chance to win cash through tournaments.

Already available in ten titles, the company has released some numbers to demonstrate the way it can boost retention and monetisation.

The lure of lucre

Working with Gnarly Games' and its GnarBike Trials title, adding Skillz immediately enabled a multiplayer mode; something the game previously lacked.

More significant, though, was the new revenue stream.

In the 37 US states where real-money gaming is allowed, players spend from $0.25 to enter real-money tournaments.

They can also participate in free tournaments and those based on Z, Skillz's in-game currency.

That's what players outside those 37 US states also get to play for.



For GnarBike Trials, integrating Skillz saw $5.16 in incremental revenue per paying player. This was on top of increased advertising revenue.

Back for more

It wasn't just about cash, though.

Conversion from players to paying players was boosted 11 percent, while the game experienced 27 percent better 7-day user retention; in part also encouraged by tournament-focused push notifications.

"The thing about the Skillz SDK is it's not just a extra little feature," commented Gnarly Games founder Robert Saxton.

"It's a polished multiplayer platform that adds a whole new section to your game that will keep users coming back again and again."

You can find out more about Skillz via its website.


Contributing Editor

A Pocket Gamer co-founder, Jon is Contributing Editor at PG.biz which means he acts like a slightly confused uncle who's forgotten where he's left his glasses. As well as letters and cameras, he likes imaginary numbers and legumes.