Scott Austin Group Manager MSN Games Agenda MSN Games Overview Site Redesign Advertising Revenue Share Vista Enhanced Games Getting Your Games on MSN Games MSN Games Overview History of MSN Games A trip down memory lane. Demographics Majority of female players Male 29% 52% of the respondents are 45 or Female 71% older 25% 21% 19% 18% 8% 8% 2% 13 to 17 18 to 24 25 to 34 35 to 44 45 to 54 55 to 64 65 and better Why do they play? Entertainment 67% A break at home 49% To keep my mind sharp 40% 67% of the respondents play A break from w ork 31% for entertainment I like the competition 21% I like to collect badges/rew ards 20% 80% play for a break, either Hobby 19% from work or at home Social activity 9% Weekend activity 8% Other 3% Watch Television 67% of respondents prefer 34% Play Games playing games on MSN on MSN Games to watching TV Games 67% Top Web Games of 2006 1. Bejeweled 2 11. Backgammon 2. Mah Jong Tiles 12. Solitaire 3. Bejeweled 13. Collapse 4. Cubis 2 14. Hearts 5. Scrabble Blast 15. Jewel Quest 6. Zuma 16. Hexic 7. Spades 17. Wheel of Fortune 8. Texas Hold ‘Em 18. Bridge 9. Text Twist 19. Bankshot Billiards 10. Luxor 20. Chuzzle Top – measured by game hours Green – also a top 20 download game Game Populations – Single Player Web Games Normalized Game Population Game Normalized Months since launch of game Game Populations – Multi-Player Web Games Normalized Game Population Game Normalized Days Do badges make a difference to web populations? Yes ! 16 14 12 10 8 6 Population 4 2 0 Top Downloads of 2006 1. Bejeweled 2 11. Luxor Amun Rising 2. Cake Mania 12. Cubis 2 Gold 3. MCF: Prime Suspects 13. Family Feud 4. Fish Tycoon 14. Hidden Expedition Titanic 5. MCF: Huntsville 15. Luxor 2 6. Magic Match 16. Jewel Quest 7. Zuma 17. Luxor 8. Diner Dash 2, MSN Version 18. Mah Jong Quest 9. Virtual Villagers 19. Diner Dash 10. Bespelled 20. Wheel of Fortune Top – measured by purchases Green – also a top 20 web game Downloads Normalized Game DownloadsGameNormalized Months since launch of game Effect of Web Game on Downloads 1.2 Boost from web game 1 0.8 0.6 0.4 0.2 Normalized Game DownloadsGameNormalized 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Months since launch of game Site Redesign Site Redesign Redesigned the entire site in October 06 2 follow on releases since then to tweak the experience Affected the whole site. There is now a consistent user experience across all parts of the site MSN Games Site redesign accomplished the following: Increase customer satisfaction by 38% Increase consumer engagement by 30% per session Support a scalable advertising model that will increase revenue and user satisfaction Provide a scalable games discovery experience that incorporates all the different play types Redesign Walkthrough Site Skins Advertising Revenue Share Program What Revenue is Shared? Revenue will be shared from ads shown during game play: Any ads after the player hits the play button Ads that run during game start-up or game breaks Ad placements in or around the game Revenue share will be of cash gross Cash gross is total dollars received (billed – bad debt) Will not be netted to a small number Developer’s revenue share the same to content owner regardless of whether their relationship with MSFT is direct or via a distribution partner Non-standard Web Games are separate, one-off deals: Custom Advergames Skinned games We will share the UUs and total game hours played What this looks like on MSN Games The Ad Placements being shared: Static Ad Video Ad Example Level 1 Criteria (earns 10%) Must meet all criteria Build to the GDK 1.2 and related requirements • Display and video advertising function calls (GameBreak API for pause, play, etc) • Score reporting system Use the badge system MS will provide several badge templates and guidelines for earning badges Developers must choose a template style and provide threshold info for badges Game must work correctly on XP and Vista Provide game metadata (within XML template) for MSFT game portfolio database Level 2 Criteria (earns 20%) Required Meet Level 1 requirements Create custom Veteran badges (number of times game played) Provide use-rights (for as long as game is on site) & high quality artwork to be used for promotion & marketing Additional Requirements (Choose 3 of 4) 1. Fully localized into at least 3 non-English languages of Developers choice from following list: Japanese, Spanish, German, French, Dutch, Italian 2. Deluxe version of web game based upon final approval by MSFT Full Experience: The game should provide a minimum of 10 hours of non-repeating, engaging game-play, thru such variables as level complexity, different characters, number of levels, and modes of play, etc. Graphics Quality – The game should use scalable graphics to support multiple resolutions of play. Eliminate interruptions to the game experience for cross-sells – cross-selling is allowed, but not in an obtrusive manner that interrupts gameplay 3. Exclusive for 6 weeks (not available on any other site other than the Developers site), remains part of Level 2 after the exclusivity period 4. ESRB rating Revenue Share Calculation Two types of revenue to be shared Ad Revenue specific to game (Sponsorship) calculated directly and will be included, not including skinned games Revenue from ROS ad products to be allocated based on gameplay hours Intermission ads appear periodically during play; not per Page View (frequency is controlled by MSN) Will use average CPM. Mass Market advertising realities limit feasibility of allocating revenue directly per game In the future, the calculation will be based off of ad impressions instead of game hours to improve the accuracy, but still with average CPM Highlighting Enhanced Web Games Homepage Game Details Page Game Discovery How to Join the Program Ad rev share program has launched on MSN Games Work with aggregator to submit game to MSN Games Existing games on the site also need to be submitted Get the latest GDK with all the details from your aggregator Vista Showcase Games 8 Vista Exclusive Games Getting Your Games on MSN Games MSN Games Portfolio Wide variety of casual game content, categorized by ways to play and genre Providing many ways to consume games Web, Downloads, Subscription, Play for cash, Messenger Strategy Have a quality bar for allowing games on the site and guidance on desired genres Let most games that meet the criteria into the portfolio Manage the size of the portfolio by looking at site performance metrics at removing poor performers Web games – game population Downloads – conversion rate and sales Subscription – game play hours International MSN Games started international expansion 2 years ago; today we are in Canada, UK, France, Germany, Japan, and Australia Aggressive expansion in 2007 Several partners are on our international sites Partners can be global or regional MSN.com International presence is well established with sites in over 40 countries We desire local and global content Regardless, localized content always preferred Vista Integration of all games Game Aggregation MSN Games works with a number of preferred partners in offering games Download and Web games – Oberon Media Subscription – Real Networks Skill Gaming – SkillJam Exceptions that warrant direct relationships IP licensing/publishing Sponsored or advergame titles Cross-platform titles, new technologies and other platform-defining efforts Top-tier developers can still participate in co-marketing and promotional opportunities, even if working through a partner MS Casual Games Developer Program Developer portal is best starting point for Benefits engaging on all our Clearer visibility into platforms engagement process www.MicrosoftCasual and project status Games.com Developer Newsletter Info about technical requirements per Invitation to platform Developer Events Clear instructions about how to ship Access to your games on our information, SDKs platforms Assigned account Registration is via managers for partners email with business Instructions on the relationships site Points of Contact MSN Games - [email protected] Oberon - [email protected] Real – [email protected] SkillJam – [email protected] © 2007 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Microsoft, Windows, Windows Vista and other product names are or may be registered trademarks and/or trademarks in the U.S. and/or other countries. The information herein is for informational purposes only and represents the current view of Microsoft Corporation as of the date of this presentation. Because Microsoft must respond to changing market conditions, it should not be interpreted to be a commitment on the part of Microsoft, and Microsoft cannot guarantee the accuracy of any information provided after the date of this presentation. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION. Questions.