Andrew Sheppard has had a productive career – playing key roles at companies like Kabam, hi5, Electronic Arts and Outspark. Now, as the newly appointed CEO of GREE International Entertainment, Inc., he will share his expertise and insights with the audience at Casual Connect Europe in Berlin, Germany, as its keynote speaker on February 7.
So what type of experience does Andrew bring to the conference and what can developers and other games industry professionals hope to learn? Here is a quick look back at Andrew’s career and what to look forward to at Casual Connect Europe.
The Work Life
Before joining GREE, Andrew spent five years at Kabam where he helped build and scale a 30-person California startup into the company that recently sold a portion of their business for a rumored $700-$800 million USD. Prior to Kabam, he played major parts in other companies as well. At hi5 Networks, he was crucial in evolving the company from a social network to a social game distribution platform. He also helped launch Outspark’s publishing business and pioneered online and free-to-play (F2P) strategies at Electronic Arts. In total, Andrew has $2 billion in F2P revenue experience across 60 PC, web and mobile games.
Now at GREE International Entertainment, Andrew is financially responsible for managing a portfolio of games and is in charge of strategically identifying where GREE should go next. Andrew notes that, as a San Francisco subsidiary of GREE, Inc. (based in Japan), GREE International Entertainment maintains a high degree of creative and operational autonomy which has been invaluable in taking advantage of the rapidly evolving games landscape. “We receive all the benefits of being part of a large multinational corporation while retaining many of the benefits of our smaller, more agile competitors.”
The aim, Andrew says, for GREE International Entertainment is to grow smartly via new projects, new technologies, new partnerships and M&A. The company’s internal focus has been on creating a truly unique AAA franchise to blow the lid off the mobile games industry. “In pushing for growth, we have been quiet for the last year,” he notes, adding “It’s hard to stay quiet when you’re working on such interesting stuff, but it’s part of the job!”
Sharing Insights
At Casual Connect Europe, Andrew will be sharing his perspective on the major innovations people should expect to see from the industry in 2017. Some questions that will be discussed are what concepts will lead to industry change – and who will be in position to lead them – as well as how European developers will play a role in the maturing games landscape. Andrew says that, for GREE, the concept of bundling and unbundling is at the center of this discussion and Casual Connect attendees can look forward to learning their perspective on the subject.
This will not be Andrew’s first time attending or speaking at a Casual Connect conference either. The industry veteran has a storied partnership with the conference – speaking at Casual Connect Asia in 2012 and both Casual Connect Asia and Casual Connect USA in 2013. Additionally, Andrew says he has been a proud advisor for the conference for over two years.
“Casual Connect is one of the the leading mobile conferences, and I always have such a great time being a part of the experience,” he says. Not only do I get a chance to reconnect with old colleagues, but it’s an opportunity to discuss what’s going on in the mobile industry: What are the key trends? What are the best games that I need to be playing right now? Which companies are really helping innovate the industry?”
Thoughts on Europe
Right now, those questions are incredibly important for Europe to discuss and find answers to. Andrew notes that the mobile gaming sector is an important and rapidly growing component of the broader entertainment industry and Europe stands out in this sector as many European companies dominate leaderboards and have become international household names.
However, he says, outgrowths of populism – such as the recent Brexit movement – have added a layer of uncertainty for the mobile games industry and UK developers in particular. Andrew notes that UKIE, the trade body for the UK’s games and interactive entertainment industry, says Brexit raises concerns on securing access to overseas talent, ensuring the UK has the proper level of investment in skilling up homegrown talent, maintaining access to capital, and the state of Video Games Tax Relief.
Questions remain over whether other countries in Europe will take a similar path. The most important question though, according to Andrew, is what role those in gaming will play in shaping the industry and the world. “As entertainers we have an obligation to entertain. But I believe our obligations go further to education and advocacy. Conferences like Casual Connect give us the opportunity to ally on topics that matter and to make a difference.”
2017 Sneak Peek
Andrew is keeping all of this in mind even as GREE undertakes its most ambitious game project ever. The company is investing more than $35 million USD in the development and marketing of its next game – which is a collaboration between the San Francisco branch as well as GREE’s Berlin publishing organization and Melbourne studio (the recently acquired developer Twiitch).
“This will make the first title from the new GREE one of the most – perhaps the most – expensive mobile game ever produced,” Andrew says. “They are working on an incredible game. Get ready for it!”
Comments
