At this moment in time, it’s safe to say that the new mobile game known as Pokemon Go is a global phenomenon. So much so that people in locations of the world where the game is not yet available are crowding NA servers just have a little taste of the action. This has resulted in the game soaring to the top of the download charts and sending Nintendos stock skyrocketing.
For those unfamiliar with the game, Pokemon Go is the latest installation into the Pokemon gaming franchise. The game can be played on any mobile device and utilizes Google maps, as well as the devices camera to create an augmented reality experience. Players are tasked with moving around in the real world to seek out rare and not so rare Pokemon. Battles between the virtual creatures can also be fought to gain experience points as well as bragging rights amongst friends.
The game is currently topping the charts as the most downloaded in both the Apple App store and the Google Play store. It is also among the top revenue-generating apps in US app stores despite it being a free download on all devices. Whether it’s original Pokemon fans from the 90’s, the new generation of Pokemon fanatics, or people who have never shown an interest in the franchise, they’re all playing.
With all of this attention the game has been getting, it may seem like Nintendo must be seriously reaping the benefits of their hard work. However, this is not exactly the case, while the Japanese entertainment company is making a healthy sum of money off the game, Apple and the other partners involved are the ones seeing the massive returns.
The game is based on previous augmented reality done by a company named Niantic, which used to be part of the tech giant known as GooGle. It also borrows licenses from Pokemon, for obvious reasons, and the app store, of course, needs their cut too. Capital Securities analyst David Gibson who was recently cited in a Bloomberg takes this all into account to estimate the profit sharing split that is likely occurring. According to AppleInsider Gibson states that “we presume that out of every 100 units earned at the App Store, 30 would go to Apple, 30 to [software developer] Niantic, 30 to Pokemon and 10 to Nintendo.”
Some business analyst expects the games popularity to only rise as the game becomes available to other parts of the world. On the other end of the spectrum, gaming enthusiasts believe the game will continue to grow, but after a while excitement for it will die down and only core franchise fans will likely be left playing. Regardless of who’s right and who’s wrong, now is as good a time as any to pick up your phone and try to catch ’em all.
