Pokemon GO players are highly engaged, spending far more time in the app than they do with some of the most popular social apps such as Facebook Inc’s Instagram and messaging services WhatsApp and Snapchat, according to SimilarWeb, a market intelligence and web analytics firm.
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The technology comes from Niantic Inc, a company founded by Google and spun off a year ago.
Then Niantic teamed up with Nintendo and created Pokemon Go, which became an global phenomenon, despite being released only in the US, Australia and New Zealand. And it could help push others to develop more games and apps that use AR in other smart ways, leading to more interest in blending the real and the digital, on handheld displays and headsets, too.
Angry Birds, created by Rovio Entertainment, brought mobile gaming to the masses when it debuted in 2009.
The comment was made earlier in the month during the launch of Pokemon Go in Sydney, but on the back of the enormous success of the game, it now seems very conceivable that similar style games could follow suit. This makes the mechanics of the game hard to replicate, even as other developers try to pile in, he said.
Obviously an agreement would need to be reached with the rights holders of the HBO series in order to create a GoT spin-off, but fans are now dreaming of Pokemon Go style of game based on the world created by George R.R. Martin. Speaking with the Financial Times, Hanke said “sponsored locations” are the “second component to our business model at Niantic”, with the first being in-app purchases.
That is more users than Twitter Inc, and the game is already helping local restaurants, coffee shops and small retailers to attract new customers.
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Furthermore, some analysts said Nintendo’s Pokeman Go success will be fleeting. The free-to-play game is now available to download on both the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store.
