“The future couldn’t be brighter for D2C”: FastSpring’s Chip Thurston on gaming’s changing platform economy

• Pocket Gamer Connects Barcelona 2026 takes place June 15th to 16th where FastSpring’s Chip Thurston will discuss the future of D2C monetisation in mobile games.
• Thurston says recent Epic rulings have accelerated D2C growth across mobile games.
• He believes publishers are now investing in web stores and D2C “with more confidence” as platform rules evolve.

For years, the mobile market grew used to operating within the big-name ecosystems of Apple and Google, abiding by their platforms' rules regarding how developers could reach players, process payments and, of course, what part of the fee goes to the platform holder. 

That landscape has changed drastically over the past two years. Regulatory pressure, along with court rulings, has seen these platforms change and has opened the way for more direct-to-consumer strategies.

From web stores to alternative payment options, wider D2C strategies have become a core business strategy for a number of mobile studios. Decisions such as the Epic vs Apple ruling have forced Apple to loosen its hold and in turn have created new opportunities for teams regarding monetisation. 

These changes and what comes next will be explored further at Pocket Gamer Connects Barcelona 2026, taking place on June 15th and 16th at the Hyatt Regency Barcelona Tower.

Among the sessions discussing the future of monetisation is a sponsored talk from Chip Thurston, head of gaming at FastSpring, who will explore how publishers can strategically grow web stores in the evolving D2C environment. 

According to Thurston, the momentum behind D2C had already been building before recent legal decisions accelerated the trend further.

“The percentage of revenue being driven via D2C channels was on a steady upward trajectory heading into 2025. That growth curve was supercharged by the Epic-Apple ruling in the United States in April 2025 that forced Apple to allow steering into D2C stores without charging platform fees, which immediately made D2C more frictionless and profitable.”

For publishers that had already invested in web stores and alternative purchasing, the shift created immediate advantages. 

“After the ruling, publishers already investing in D2C were well-positioned to capitalise on the new opportunity, and publishers without a D2C solution quickly made plans to adopt one,” Thurston explains. “This momentum continued with the Epic-Google ruling in October 2025, driving even stronger D2C performance across the industry.”

The wider market is already seeing the impact, with major mobile publishers reporting record D2C revenue as web stores become a larger driver of overall spending. 

The changing economy

While a large part of the conversation surrounding DC2 has focused on lower platform fees and more generous publisher freedom, the next phase may dive even deeper.

Major platform holders are beginning to outline what the future of monetisation could look like in a more open system and are introducing new fee models and systems.

According to Thurston, the industry expected platforms to respond once D2C growth accelerated. 

“We knew the no-fee steering window wouldn’t remain open indefinitely," he says. “As one top publisher described to me, 'Apple and Google won’t let us live rent-free in their house forever'.”

Rather than slowing D2C momentum, however, Thurston states that these new frameworks may ultimately provide publishers with greater certainty and more strategic flexibility. 

“In 2026, we're seeing the platforms start to outline what that D2C future will look like,” says Thurston. “In the proposed Epic-Google settlement, Google specifies how they intend to break up the all-in 30% fee into separate fees for service and billing. This new fee structure introduces deeper complexity, but it also creates new opportunities.”

This type of shift could have major implications for how publishers approach user acquisition and their long-term monetisation strategy. 

“First, a settlement like this introduces a level of certainty we haven't seen before in D2C, meaning publishers can invest precious dev time in D2C solutions with more confidence,” Thurston explains. 

Spending patterns 

One of the most significant opportunities, Thurston suggests, lies in how publishers use D2C channels to drive repeat spending behaviour outside of traditional app storefronts.

“If Google starts taking a fee of linked payments on D2C revenue as proposed in the Epic-Google settlement, publishers can strategically leverage these fees to maximise growth,” he says. 

Web stores appear to favour long-term player relationships where a sense of loyalty can be built. This means that rather than one-off payments, D2C stores can drive players to keep returning to their own payment methods. 

“Our data shows that over 90% of web store purchases come from customers who have made a D2C purchase in the last 30 days,” Thurston says. “This means publishers can continue to drive the vast majority of revenue with repeat purchases (i.e., without platform fees), while leveraging the new platform fees to create new D2C customers.”

As publishers continue to adapt to changing platform rules and regulatory shifts, D2C shows no signs of slowing and is looking to be a central pillar of the mobile games business strategy. 

For Thurston, the long-term outlook remains overwhelmingly positive. 

“Ultimately, the future couldn't be brighter for D2C in gaming,” he says. “I can't wait to see where we go from here.”

The broader future of D2C in games will be discussed in more detail during Thurston’s session at Pocket Gamer Connects Barcelona 2026, alongside more than 100 speakers covering mobile, PC, console and more across the two-day event.