Mobile entertainment may still be in its infancy, but Player X is one company already set on becoming a media-spanning megacorp, publishing and distributing everything from mobile games and TV to video, and also working in mobile gambling.
“We have huge confidence that mobile users see mobile content as their best form of entertainment delivery,” Player X’s CEO Tony Pearce told us in our interview.
What advantage does it give Player X to work across offerings as varied as movies and gambling?
It enables us to work with film studios, and to be as sophisticated as their delivery mechanisms. We have learnt to be as on-time with quality products as they are, and it’s been an excellent way of doing business. As for gambling, it allows us to offer another product that is hugely popular with mobile users.
Is there an advantage to your wide scope from the end consumer’s point-of-view?
If you’re asking do consumers like our products, I’d say yes. Two of our games, Family Fortunes and Blockbusters, have already featured in the ELSPA Top 10, and the two movies we’ve been associated with – Miami Vice and Wallace & Gromit – Curse of the Were-Rabbit – were both Number One at the US Box office and global hits, so we must be doing something right. All of our products are tailored for the consumer.
Do you think people are really getting into mobile content yet?
It’s taking time, but reality is replacing hype and the tipping point is close. Up til this point, the whole industry has been a bit lax in marketing mobile content. All it needs is for an operator or handset manufacturer to run ironic TV ads showing how it’s actually done for the whole industry to go stratospheric. There is a panic out there that resembles the time the internet bubble popped – but as we all know, the internet was never going to go away. The same is true for mobile. You only need to see how kids use their phones to know mobile content is the future.
Isn’t there a danger that mobile users will follow recent Internet trends and jump straight to user-created content?
That’s possible, but there’s nothing wrong with user-generated content – in fact, we embrace it. Our new mobile video channel geekTV has a user-generated element, and there will always be trends and meanderings that change the way business is done. We like to think we’re au fait with all these changes; we employ people who not only understand what’s happening next, but who also come up with ideas that precede such understanding.
What kind of mobile video content are you finding most popular?
It’s early days, but animation and comedy are obviously leading the way. Anything that makes people laugh or has that viral element that get people using the content is going to work. We also have the rights to the Premiership outside the UK.
Why should people watch movie clips on their phone? Isn’t it a good thing for the studios, from a promotion point of view, but not actually that interesting for consumers?
It depends on the content. People love watching internet trailers and although I don’t think that would work on mobile too well, there are opportunities to create made-for-mobile content based around the movie. We’re already working with Hollywood studios to do this, and I think the consumer will love the result.
Why should people gamble on their phone?
Because they want to and because they’re allowed to. Responsible gambling is part of culture and an entertainment medium that is long-established. Mobile gambling is very much casual gambling, in the way games are casual. There is definitely a market for it and this is a market that will become more popular as various technologies evolve.
Isn’t it dangerously addictive?
That depends on the consumer; there will always be some who go over the top, just like anywhere else in life. We’re very diligent in ensuring all sign-ups to our gambling content are connected to the electoral roll, so there’s absolutely no chance that vulnerable young people fall into the trap of doing something they aren’t mature enough for. There are enough brakes and mechanisms to ensure our gambling products are designed for responsible interaction. Ultimately, people are responsible for their own actions.
Why is Player X’s casino better than what else is out there?
Because the interface is absolutely excellent and offers customers a simple way of playing familiar games. Why complicate matters by having bells and whistles hanging off every pixel? We would say that, but I really think ours is the best out there!
Part of the Player X strategy seems to be offering a mix of big licenses people will recognize like American Dad or Miami Vice with made-for-mobile content like Jonny Internet. What’s your gut feel about what consumers will prefer in the medium term?
Gut instincts are always dangerous but I think it will be a mixture of licences, user-generated content and only-for-mobile content. The whole strategy behind our mobile video channel is to offer consumers a broad palette of content into which they can put their metaphorical paintbrush.
What would you say are the three biggest changes operators and handset manufacturers could make that would see more phone owners downloading more mobile content?
Firstly, they should co-operate more on loading handsets with teaser content that enable a link from that embedded content to an operator’s portal where such content can be downloaded. They should also spend more on marketing, and they should stop fighting over who owns the customer
What three sites or services would you recommend to say your 25-year old cousin who has got a new phone and wants to try out some of the snazzy features she read about when she chose the phone?
1. itsmy.com is a mobile web community that is a very good use of mobile social networking.
2. abphone is a great place to search for images in the same way as Google image searches.
3. The BBC mobile site is great for sports results and more reliable than operators’ portals!
Finally, what has Player X got coming out in the run up to Christmas?
Among others, look out for Blazing Fists, Family Fortunes TV edition, Bullseye, EMI lyrics and Actua Golf.
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