At Casual Connect Asia, Alexander announced that they have formed a partnership with NHN, and will be releasing their first free-to-play game together. Alexander Dubrovin, VP, Sales and Marketing at Alawar Entertainment, has been in sales and marketing for the past 15 years for several companies, so this was the perspective he brought to Alawar when he joined the company in 2009 and became responsible for market research and analysis and promoting the company’s online resources and game brands. In 2011, he was appointed VP of Mobile Platforms, and in 2013, as the company was restructured, he was still responsible for iOS and Android mobile, but also became involved with leads and branding for the company.
The Effects of F2P
Alexander emphasizes the importance of the free-to-play model, since now one game can generate over one million dollars in revenue each day. He sees examples of this in Alawar, pointing out that, even though they do not as yet have cross-platform capabilities, when they release an iOS game in Android, they immediately see their sales in iOS begin to rise. Alexander tells us, “This is because if we release a game on two platforms, players can play each other simultaneously, growing more and more users for the game.
The most important emerging trend in the game industry, as he sees it, is “Google, the 24-hour company with free-to-play cross-platform games.” Alawar expects to become involved this year with ten new titles that Alexander hopes will be cross-platform free-to-play games. At Casual Connect Asia, Alexander announced that they have formed a partnership with NHN, and will be releasing their first free-to-play game together. At the last Casual Connect Asia, he met for the first time a guide from NHN. Soon after, Alawar and NHN signed the partnership contract, with the new game coming soon. Alexander expresses that he is excited to work with Casual Connect Asia and believes that it is one of the best events in the world. Every year, they find new partners, new projects and new ideas, so they really enjoy the event.
Challenges of the Mobile Market
The mobile market in Asia is very important to Alawar. China, Japan and Korea are among the top ten in their sales. Alexander tells us the market is huge and rapidly growing. The Japanese market in particular continues to increase in the app store and Google Play, until now it could be bigger than in the US. It has become one of the biggest and most important markets in the world.
He feels the biggest challenge he has faced in his career has been starting to work in the mobile game market. This market required making mobile games from scratch, although they now have big publishers in PC, Casual, and Mobile. They have now received solid reviews and have great games. Another tremendous challenge for Alexander has been meeting the company goal of doubling their sales each year, but he has been able to fulfill this expectation. During the last year alone, they released over one hundred games, a fact which definitely helps increase their sales. With the excitement of such a dynamic company, he believes the greatest fulfillment he will receive in his career is still in the future.
