NETFLIX Launches Mobile Gaming Platform
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Netflix has been a popular platform for the modern generations providing the most preferred over the internet (OTT) services.
From the most popular Netflix series like: Narcos, The Walking Dead, Marvel's Daredevil, The Witcher, Lucifer, Spartacus and many other numerous titles to exclusive movies - it has an average daily watchtime of around 3 hours, per person. As per the CEO of Netflix, Reed Hastings,
We're still a small fraction of every society's overall viewing. So I think there's still room to go there.
Netflix's entry into the gaming horizon may prove to be even more profitable as in the recent times, gaming market is one of the most booming markets among others. The recent reports stated, while analyzing the overall contribution to growth during the forecast period,
The global gaming market size is expected to gain momentum by reaching USD 545.98 billion by 2028 while exhibiting a CAGR of 13.20% between 2021 and 2028.
The planning starts with the hiring of the former executive of Electronic Arts Inc. and Facebook Inc., Mike Verdu, who was previously a senior vice president at Electronic Arts (EA) and vice president at Facebook Oculus augmented and virtual reality division.
Bringing the gaming platform within the most popular OTT streaming, could prove highly rewarding for the handset-friendly market, mainly in India.
Adding further interest to the existing viewers and attracting more mobile gamers to enter into the subscription community, there would even be more brand awareness. Instead of searching and downloading free games or buying games separately from Google Play store, Netflix would offer a new gaming section under without any additional charges to the prevailing subscriptions.
With the smartphone first move, Netflix will be able to penetrate the Tier-2/Tier-3 cities in India which are not Netflix's core user base. Numbers suggest that streaming platform users in these cities prefer vernacular and regional content. Adding gaming to content will add these users to the Netflix platform.
Noted by the Assistant Professor of Marketing at IIM Ahmedabad, Anuj Kapoor.
Is Netflix Gaming A Good Strategy?
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Especially meant for casual mobile gamers, Netflix gaming platform can be useful. Gamers who prefer multiplayers in computer or consoles, would mostly avoid these as playing in a small screen is not that enjoyable as on a big screen PC / Console.
However, Netflix chief operating officer and chief product officer Greg Peters stated to "learn and grow and refocus our investment based on what we see is working." The company would focus on user satisfaction rather than launching and going forward with a new genre without analyzing the acceptance of the community.
Maybe someday we'll see a game that spawns a film or a series. That would be an amazing place to get to, to really see the rich interplay between these different forms of entertainment.
Netflix being a company providing a bunch of entertainment services, would extend its viewer satisfaction amid the aim of diversifying revenue sources with an indispensable gaming component.
Netflix Games On Offer
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Related to the movies or series by the names, Netflix has a couple of gaming titles available right now. Such a step of Netflix was firstly to expand its market and secondly due to the positive feedback from the VR demo of Eden Unearthed, Minecraft story mode and Black Mirror: Bandersnath. The five titles available now are listed as:
- Stranger things:1984 - Experience the 1984 action adventure in favorite locations like Mirkwood Forest and Hawkins Lab, while solving puzzles with the unique abilities of each characters in the game.
- Stranger things 3:The game - The game is an official companion game to the third season of the hit original series, involving uncovering never-before-seen quests, character interactions and secrets.
- Teeter Up - A classic type game of a ball, a platform and a hole, wherein the platform is maneuvered to allow the ball into the hole.
- Shooting Hoops - It's a basketball game with a dart gun to shoot the ball into the hoop.
- Card blast - A fast paced poker game with exciting puzzles which mixed skill and luck. Powerful abilities of boosts helps you to achieve higher scores while overcoming the challenges, both in single-player or multiplayer modes.
The Netflix games would be available for the existing subscribers as they could download these premium games for free from the Google Play Store.
However, a disappointing news is that this game library is available only to the selected countries: Spain, Italy, and Poland, restricted only to the Android platform. This means that it would be missing on the strong subscription base of India and other countries.
Bloomberg Intelligence Analyst Geetha Ranganathan, stated
This is a natural extension of its Netflix's content strategy, allowing it to mine intellectual property from popular shows like 'Stranger Things.' Though it may not generate much additional revenue, it will help deepen engagement and increase the service’s appeal and pricing power. Don't expect this to be a turning point, but it shows that the company will explore new formats to increase time spent on the platform.
