Europe 2015Video Coverage

Leonard Frankel: Taking Plarium to Mobile | Casual Connect Video

June 24, 2015 — by Catherine Quinton

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Europe 2015Video Coverage

Leonard Frankel: Taking Plarium to Mobile | Casual Connect Video

June 24, 2015 — by Catherine Quinton

'Plarium puts a lot of emphasis on finding the right players.'– Leonard FrankelClick To Tweet

Leonard Frankel presented tweaks that could boost already solid games’ monetization, engagement or retention at Casual Connect Europe 2015, using games from the Indie Prize Showcase as well as Plants vs. Zombies and Candy Crush Soda Saga as examples.

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Leonard Frankel
Leonard Frankel is the head of business at Plarium

As head of business development at Plarium, Leonard Frankel is responsible for locating investment opportunities in various markets for the largest hardcore games developer on Facebook. He is also leading Plarium into mobile and browser markets, while establishing collaborations and locating new technologies and services. In this interview, he shared his insights into the games industry with GameSauce.


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GameSauce: Tell us about the work you do at your company. How did you come to work at your current company?

Leonard Frankel: At Plarium I run all the business development activities. This would include M&A, IP deals with Hollywood studios, working with platforms such as Apple and Google, distribution deals and new markets, such as Asia. I came to this position over three years ago; pretty straightforward, via a wanted ad.

GS: How have your past experiences been helpful to you in your current position?

Leonard: Before joining Plarium, I managed my own startup, which developed an AI engine for poker games. After a couple of years we wanted to pivot into social games to be based on that engine. While this pivot eventually did not materialize, going through the process of studying the games industry, specifically the economy of games on Facebook, was very handy when I came to interview for my current position, as well as in my first year.

GS: What do you do in your free time? What are your hobbies?

Leonard: Swimming, rock climbing, occasional yoga.

GS: What is your favorite thing about your job?

Leonard: Closing deals is always satisfying, albeit infrequent. Meeting the people who develop the games I play is utterly exciting.

StormfallFullW
Stormfall: Rise of Balur is Plarium’s strategy release on mobile

GS: What inspired you to pursue this career?

Leonard: It would be odd to call my path a career — I started as a semi-professional poker player, worked as a crude oil trader, after which I opened my startup and now I’m doing BD in games. It’s been an interesting ride. At every intersection I try to leverage my accumulated expertise and network of contacts.

GS: Do you have any advice for someone interested in pursuing the same career?

Leonard: For any business choice in your life, you should make sure to examine and create opportunities and try to evaluate, not only your immediate benefits, but also long-term potential and expected education.

GS: What was your dream job as a child?

Leonard: Seriously, games. As a teenager I kept telling myself, “I love games so much, I wish someone would pay me to play games.” Fast forward 20 years, and it is officially part of my job.

GS: In your younger years was there anything that hinted at your future career path in gaming? Did you expect to end up where you are today?

Leonard: In the ’80s, games made up a much smaller industry and it certainly was not as mass market as it is today. My parents probably wished for me to become a doctor or a pilot. But these are exciting times, and if it stays that way, so will I.

GS: What is your creative process like? Where do you begin?

Leonard: My personal thought process is very verbal; I realize and solve problems through talking about them with other people, not necessarily through field expertise. In between these conversations, I jot down all my learning into a doc or piece of paper, and then I bring structure and interesting solutions.

GS: If you had unlimited resources and time, what type of game would you create?

Leonard: A full RTS for mobile with complex collectible economy drawn from Japanese games.

GS: What do you think will be the next big trend in the industry in the next three to five years? How are you incorporating this trend into your future plans?

Leonard: Probably the decline in online platforms. Fewer and fewer people are buying physical PCs and existing owners have drastically reduced PC usage, as they often prefer going online through their mobile devices. It seems clear that web platforms are on the decline, and this force pushes even more developers toward mobile, which in turn raises the quality bar and drives UA cost up even higher.

At Plarium we are constantly looking to study our audience and offer them a great and improving experience. We aspire to bring our knowledge from web games into the mobile experience and create a cross-platform seamless experience to match this transition phase.

GS: What attributes do you look for in a member of your team?

Leonard: When looking to grow the team, I look for people who are eager to succeed and prove their competency. Autonomy is a key characteristic for me, as I would like to delegate responsibilities to the team and move forward through their enablement.

GS: What has been the most effective form of marketing for your company?

Leonard: With a user acquisition team of more than 70 people, it is easy to see how Plarium puts a lot of emphasis on finding the right players to which our games would be the most fun. We try to explore new ways and channels all the time.

GS: Are you a gamer? What are some of your favorites and why?

Leonard: I’m a rehabilitated gamer. Nowadays I play mostly on tablets, and after quitting Hearthstone, I found joy in Space Wolf, which is a tactical battle, resembling the XCOM series.

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Catherine Quinton

Catherine Quinton

Catherine Quinton is a staff writer for www.gamesauce.org. Catherine loves her hobby farm, long walks in the country and reading great novels.

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