Zynga has dominated the social-gaming space thanks to audience hits such as Farmville and Mafia Wars, as well as the huge distribution they enjoyed through the Facebook platform. But the gaming audiences on Facebook appear to be slipping, according to research by IHS iSuppli. The market intelligence firm suggests monthly active users for Zynga’s Facebook games dropped from 266 million users in the third quarter of last year to 225 million in the fourth. The reasons? Bored users, distractions and Facebook’s non-gaming-specific audience. Is the honeymoon over for social-gaming companies?
Facebook rocketed to prominence as a gaming platform in 2009 and 2010. However, with equal speed, the market then settled into a state of maturity in 2011, with conditions becoming markedly more challenging for game operators. While Facebook remains a worthwhile opportunity for companies able to meet these challenges, the tone of the market in 2012 will be somewhat muted compared to the optimistic outlook of the past few years.
Read the full post at the iSuppli site.
More in Media
How a fashion creator turned audience demand into a 500+ client styling business
A creator with a fashion merchandising degree speaks on her quest to diversify revenue fast, from styling to sweat equity investment.
Forbes looks to Google AI pilot for insights as publishers seek value beyond the click
Forbes has joined Google’s paid News AI pilot that gives Google expanded rights to its content to test new ways of providing readers with context about stories before they click through.
The Verge switches up its audience team to prepare for Google Zero
The Verge has restructured its audience development team to prioritize loyal readers over traffic and page views.