Have you ever found yourself in a situation where your ad performance just won't budge, no matter how much you "fix" the campaign? Usually, our first instinct is to check the settings: the bidding strategy, audience targeting, or even the budget. But here's the frustrating reality: even with these optimized setups, many ads struggle to get moving and fail to even pass the cold-start phase. This isn't just a streak of bad luck. It's because the rules of the game have changed: Meta has fundamentally rewritten the rules of ad delivery, quietly shifting its focus from manual campaign adjustments to the actual content of your ad. 01 From Matching to Mind Reading For a long time, Meta's algorithm acted like a matchmaker. It paired users […]

In the world of mobile game user acquisition (UA), we are witnessing a fundamental paradigm shift. The era of "human vs. platform" is ending; the era of AI vs. AI has arrived.  The Algorithm Trap: Are We Just Working for the Platforms? For years, game developers have felt the squeeze of "Traffic Red Oceans". But the real pressure isn't just rising costs—it’s the loss of control. Modern automated bidding systems and black-box algorithms now dictate traffic auction and distribution, leaving marketers with dwindling room for manual optimization. Many practitioners now feel they are "working for the platforms," with every dollar of their budget serving as training data for the platform’s machine learning rather than guaranteed ROI.   The Efficiency Paradox: […]

Over the past year, AI-powered apps have entered a phase of rapid growth. According to data from AppGrowing, the number of active AI app campaigns in Q4 2024 rose by 20% compared to Q1. While mature markets like North America and Europe remain key battlegrounds, emerging regions such as Southeast Asia are drawing increased attention for their vast untapped potential. As competition intensifies, the question for developers is how to seize the opportunities these emerging markets present. One answer may lie in the strategies of local players. Vietnamese developer Xtech began exploring the AI space in late 2023 and has since made generative AI its strategic priority for 2024. The company recently launched PixArt: AI Photo Generator (hereafter referred to […]

At the end of last month, Kunlun Tech released its 2024 financial report, introducing two new revenue segments: "AI Software Technologies" and "Short Drama Platforms.” The latter proved particularly noteworthy, generating over RMB 167 million (approx. $23 million), accounting for 2.96% of total revenue. Among these, DramaWave, launched in the second half of 2024, received prominent attention. According to the report, by the end of March this year, the app had achieved an annualized revenue run rate (ARR) of approximately $120 million and surpassed 10 million monthly active users (MAUs), placing it among the top five players in the sector. Launched in September 2023, DramaWave entered a market already dominated by early movers such as ReelShort, ShortMax, and DramaBox, all […]

At the end of last month, LTGAMES established a new company, Keyin Technology, in Shenzhen, holding a 45% stake. The remaining shares are owned by Li Xinyu, who also heads LTGAMES's global short drama division.Notably, Li recently posted a job listing for a U.S.-based producer in Los Angeles. In fact, LTGAMES began laying the groundwork for this move back in October 2023, when it established Shenzhen Yunmeng Film & Television Technology Co., injecting RMB 3 million in capital. Less than three months later, its drama app, DramaLet, launched across multiple global markets. So, as a newcomer from the gaming sector, how has LTGAMES fared in the increasingly crowded short drama space? And what prompted this pivot at a time when […]

According to data from the China Audio-video and Digital Publishing Association, the overseas revenue of China's online literature industry reached RMB 4.35 billion in 2023, marking a year-on-year growth of 7.06%—a sharp decline from the 39.87% growth seen in 2022. Once a booming sector that attracted major players such as ByteDance and Xiaomi, the market is now showing clear signs of slowing down. As the industry enters a new phase, with the wheat separated from the chaff, which players are still vying for dominance in the global market? 01 | Beyond Infinity Technology (无限进制) Founded in 2020, Beyond Infinity Technology traces its origins back to STARY (星阅科技), which launched its global-facing novel app Dreame as early as 2018. To refine […]

This year, the short drama market is growing faster than expected. In China's mainland, 《完蛋！我被美女包围了(Love Is All Around)》 became a dark horse in the form of "short dramas + game". In global market, with the emergence of several popular short dramas, the topic of "short drama marketing" has been on the rise, which is reminiscent of the "global Internet literature marketing" in 2021. As a professional global mobile marketing strategy platform, AppGrowing has witnessed the wave of global internet literature marketing. Recently, we have observed the strong trend of a group of short drama apps. AppGrowing data shows that ReelShort of Crazy Maple Studio, which is is a participant of COL Group, recently topped the USA iOS Entertainment Free Chart, […]

MMORPG mobile games are one of the most popular categories in Vietnam. According to Sensor Tower, MMORPGs have always led the Vietnamese mobile game market. In June 2023, Hoa Kiếm Mobile, a new game officially released by local Vietnamese game developer Funtap, won the Top 1 of the App Store game chart at the beginning of its beta test. According to AppGrowing, the game ran massive advertising campaigns in its pre-registration and early launch period, which was a major reason why it managed to win among popular games from well-known developers such as VNG and VTC. Source: AppGrowing Hoa Kiếm Mobile is a typical Chinese Fantasy MMORPG with "swordplay" as the main selling point, allowing players to choose from 5 […]

After unveiling Watcher of Realms in April this year, Moonton has taken the next step. According to AppGrowing, Moonton's Watcher of Realms placed the No.1 pre-registering game by ads on App Store in the last 30 days. The card RPG is due to release on July 13, that is to say, Moonton started the pre-registration advertising more than a month before its launch. Source: AppGrowing Since it was acquired by Bytedance for $4 billion in 2021, Moonton has accelerated its expansion. Watcher of Realms is supposed to be Moonton's first self-developed game released after the acquisition.   01 New Card RPG Topped the Pre-registration   Officially billed as the "Next Generation Fantasy Card RPG Mobile Game", Watcher of Realms hit […]

According to the statistics, mobile accounts for approximately half of the web traffic worldwide. For example, in the fourth quarter of 2021, mobile devices (excluding tablets) generated nearly 55 percent of global website traffic. Being in such an era, the importance of mobile marketing is self-evident. You may have heard of banner ads, In-Feed ads, native ads, and a few other terms, and have been confused by the wide variety. In this article, AppGrowing will give an overview of mobile advertising, introducing both mainstream and emerging forms of mobile advertising. (As you know, the core of AppGrowing's service centered around mobile ad intelligence)     If classified according to the location where the ads appear, mainstream mobile advertising can be broadly classified as follows: App Open Ads Banner Ads Interstitial Ads In-Feed Ads Rewarded Ads Pre-Roll Ads   1. App Open Ads   source: pangleglobal    App open […]