Gaming
Exclusive Q&A with Alexandre Salem, Global Director of Gaming Partnerships at Huawei

We have had an enlightening interview with Alexandre Salem, Global Director of Gaming Partnerships at Huawei.
Here he talks about the Huawei Gaming Ecosystem, how it’s gearing up to challenge the near duopoly Google Playstore and Apple Appstore, and why game developers shouldn’t miss it.
Here is the full text of the interview.
Q. Let us begin with a brief introduction to the Huawei Gaming Ecosystem. How does it help to facilitate the ultimate mobile gaming experience for users?
A. AppGallery is the official app distribution platform at Huawei, and the third-largest app marketplace in the world. We’ve designed it as a gateway to some of the latest and most exciting mobile game experiences for consumers.
When we look at the increase in people gaming around the world, it’s clear just how significant a role app marketplaces will have to play. We’re looking at 3.2 billion global gamers by 2023, and from that we’re predicting over two thirds will be on a mobile device.
To drive the global growth that we’re seeing, we provide our developers with the innovative technology they need to create the ultimate gaming experiences for their customers. Developers can integrate with elements of Huawei’s HMS Core for example to harness the unique software and hardware capabilities – all in the name of imagining new gameplay for mobile gamers.
There’s also the choice of integrating with app development tools for different Huawei devices, enabling gamers to switch between a MatePad and a P40, for example, with little effort and an overall seamless and enjoyable experience.
We’re already proud of our reputation for building quality hardware to facilitate a superior gaming experience for users, bringning some really unique gameplay to the table. Take Perfect World Games’ ReEvolve, for example. It’s the first mobile game that you can play on folding screen technology.
We’re also continuously looking to grow the number of mobile games available on AppGallery, with the aim of establishing Huawei as a true powerhouse of mobile gaming. Last year for example we launched a one-stop gaming platform for our more committed gamers called GameCenter, promoting an even richer gaming experience to those interested in exclusive discounts, unique gameplay and an exciting reward scheme. While AppGallery is Huawei’s comprehensive marketplace for all app categories, users who particularly love games can download GameCenter for an end-to-end game service.
Q. Could you provide some key stats regarding the number of users, games and developers in the Huawei Gaming Ecosystem currently?
A. AppGallery’s progress is something we’re really excited about. Considering the platform is only three years old in overseas markets, we already have a huge selection of convenient, fun and innovative gaming options to choose from. AppGallery caters to the different interests of its committed mobile gamers, from role-playing, action, MOBA, and MMORPG, to puzzle, turn-based and idle games.
In line with the growth of mobile gaming that we’re seeing more generally, AppGallery is also expanding – there are now 500% more games available on the platform compared to a year ago. Our users are often amongst the first to experience innovative new gameplay from around the world, with launches from the past year including AFK Arena, Asphalt 9: Legends, Clash of Kings and many more.
AppGallery continues to see strong growth in gaming availability, with over 12,000 games available and over 80 million games installed overall. Furthermore, there has been a 100% growth in games revenue in 2020 compared to 2019, and a 120% growth in paying players.
Thanks to the ongoing development of the HMS ecosystem, AppGallery now has 540 million monthly active users. There are 2.7 million registered developers worldwide, 134,000 apps integrated with HMS Core and, in 2020, we saw 384.4 billion app distributions (174 billion more than the previous year) – many of which are attributable to the mobile gaming sector.
Q. Huawei AppGallery boldly attempts to challenge the near duopoly of Google Play store and the App Store. What do developers and publishers gain exclusively by choosing AppGallery?
A. Something that sets AppGallery apart from competitors is the close relationship that we have with developers. We work closely with our partners to identify their own aspirations and desires – and not just in the gaming space.
Something that receives a lot of great feedback from developers and mobile users alike is our dedication to technical and marketing support. We implement a “Global + Local” Strategy, designed to help developers utilise our platform. It works both ways, because not only are we supporting smaller developers at the local level, but we’re also providing our diverse global customer base with the most relevant apps and games for them.
We also provide one-stop, full-spectrum operational support for developers worldwide, covering the entire development cycle. From ideation, development, distribution, operation to data analytics for global developers, we’re there to help. And the partnership doesn’t end at launch – we have dedicated teams to provide ongoing business and commercial support.
Building an ecosystem from scratch is something that takes a lot of time – we’ve been working on this for three years and the progress is so exciting. We’ll continue to prioritise our partners, providing them with an opportunity to tap into the competitive mobile market.
Another differentiating benefit we bring to our gaming partners is an in-depth expertise in the Chinese market, the largest in the world in players number and revenue. For the developers interested in penetrating this market, we can bring a suite of tailor-made services to maximize the chances of success.
Q. Tell us about the advantages and support that game developers can enjoy as part of the Huawei Ecosystem.
Mobile gaming is a huge market and one that is growing significantly. Something that we advocate for at Huawei is helping developers to get their foot on the ladder and grow within an increasingly competitive space.
With this in mind, we empower local developers with our on-the-ground support. We now have five global developer centres in Romania, Egypt, Mexico, Malaysia and Russia. We also have three ecosystem labs in Germany, Poland and Russia, as well as over 20 online Huawei Developer Day (HDD) events throughout the year. Developers can also utilise the seven DigiX Lab Innovation laboratories – they’re based in Dublin, Moscow, Düsseldorf, Mexico, Dubai, Johannesburg and Singapore. Here, developers can access real machine debugging, development capability experiences and other tools and guidance.
Our collaboration with developers doesn’t stop when a game is on-boarded in AppGallery. Our goal is to support gaming developers in attracting, converting and retaining as many players as possible. We don’t hesitate to roll up our sleeves alongside our gaming partners to run co-marketing campaigns to boost games discoverability.
Q. What are the options for monetization and the advertisement support that publishers can enjoy as part of the Huawei Ecosystem?
A. Something that we’re passionate about at Huawei is aligning our partners’ business development goals with the tools they need to achieve them. There are a variety of different HMS Core Kits that developers can choose to integrate with to harness the unique software and hardware capabilities we have on offer.
This includes the Huawei Ads Kit which empowers developers to create high-quality and personalized ads within their apps. Alongside the easy-to-use Publisher Service, developers can work seamlessly with third-party advertising and tracking platforms to monitor ad success. We also have a range of platforms to encourage our partners to boost their revenue, from the traffic monetization platform − a one-stop platform for developers to earn more − to advertising identifiers and conversion attributions.
In a nutshell, we provide a flexible set of services for gaming developers to fit their business models, whether they monetize through IAP, ads, premium paid games or a mix of those revenue streams.
Q. Could you enlighten us on the user data protection measures that Huawei has taken to ensure that the personal information of users is not compromised? This is probably an area where even the biggest companies on the internet have an inconsistent record.
A. AppGallery has a full-cycle security and protection system, including developer real-name verification, a four-step review process, download and installation protection as well as a prevention mechanism for secure app operation. Protecting user privacy and security is something that we take very seriously.
In addition to ensuring that all default apps fully comply with privacy compliance requirements, EMUI provides permit management, notification management, audio/video reminders, location service management and other privacy settings for apps, giving users visibility and control over their permissions.
Huawei has also established local data storage in six regional centres and 15 data centres worldwide. Complying with the localized service distribution and deployment policy, personal information is encrypted and stored in the area to which the user belongs. For example, Huawei stores all European user data in Germany, where rules and regulations call for the highest standards of user privacy.
To further ensure the safety of our users, we have implemented an age rating system globally, which intelligently blocks non-age-appropriate content according to user settings to provide a safe and healthy application environment for underage users.
Q. Huawei is betting big on the Internet of Things (IoT). How do you think the IoT is going to make its mark in the gaming sector?
A. In two years’, time, we expect to see 2.6 billion gamers streaming and competing together on mobile devices. The IoT is another area where we have a reputation for taking the lead and driving an industrial-scale digital transformation. Through our all-scenario, modular solutions, we’ll ensure that our mobile gamers have access to the smoothest possible gameplay experience.
In the next few years, we expect to see gamers having access to an increasing number of smart devices and wanting to play their favourite games in a frictionless manner across those devices. Let’s imagine the following user journey: a gamer might receive a notification on their smart watch reminding them to a play the next shooter game level. They might pass a few levels during the commute to work on a smartphone, and continue playing at home on a tablet, before competing with friends on a smart TV over the weekend. This type of cross-device and cross-platform gameplay will require developers to evolve their game development practices. It will mean that we need to bring hardware and software making this “omni-channel gaming” possible.
Q. Finally, what are Huawei’s major initiatives in the near future to deliver the ultimate mobile gaming experience?
A. Our top priority remains our users – we’ll continue to provide them with access to the best, most relevant mobile games in the world. There are a number of unique ways in which we’re able to do this. For example, we listen to our global customers’ needs through Wishlist – a tool that AppGallery users can use to recommend an app that they’d like to see available on the platform.
We also have staff dedicated to reading users’ feedback in Wishlist and analysing apps with the most votes. This allows us to prioritise the most wanted apps and ensure that consumer appeal is addressed, so that AppGallery is adapting to the fast-changing mobile app landscape.
We are also keeping in mind gamers needs and preferences when we design and launch new hardware on the market. I am extremely excited about our line-up of smartphones, smart TVs, connected watches and other devices and I am intimately convinced that this hardware ecosystem will bring the gaming experience to a new level.
Looking at the growth that the gaming industry has seen this year alone, it’s our mission to ensure that Huawei remains at the forefront of mobile gaming.
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Gaming
THE BATTLE OF POLYTOPIA ANNOUNCES GLOBAL WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS WITH $10,000 PRIZE POOL

Midjiwan, the award-winning independent studio behind The Battle of Polytopia has today announced The Polytopia World Championship with a prize pool of $10,000 USD and a live final broadcast from Stockholm.
The Polytopia World Championship is set to launch this fall, uniting players from across the globe in an epic showdown of fast-paced strategic mastery. The tournament will be themed to Battle of the Tribes. Players will choose to compete with one of Polytopia’s 12 in-game tribes; each with a unique regional theme and skillset.
The tournament will begin with open qualifiers, giving everyone a chance to prove themselves. From there, players will advance through tribe-specific playoffs and head-to-head elimination rounds, each match bringing them one step closer to glory.
The top six players will earn a spot in the live finals in Stockholm on December 6: an in-person event streamed online for fans worldwide. In addition to live commentary of the tournament, the fan event will also provide behind-the-scenes content from the Midjiwan team.
The winner will be awarded a prize pool of $10,000; making this tournament the biggest competitive event in The Battle of Polytopia’s nine year history.
Christian Lovstedt, CEO of Midjiwan AB, commented: “This marks a major new step for Polytopia’s competitive scene, featuring a fresh tournament format and enhanced broadcasting that makes it even more exciting for viewers to watch, learn, and get inspired by the world’s top players.“
The matches will be played on the Polytopia Official Space on the Challengermode esports Platform.
The planned dates are:
September:
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Sep 13–14
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Sep 20–21
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Sep 27–28
October:
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Oct 4–5
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Oct 11–12
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Oct 18–19
November:
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Oct 25–26
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Nov 1–2
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Nov 8–9
Nov 22–23
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Faceoff
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Final Qualifier
Dec 6
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World Championship Live Event
The post THE BATTLE OF POLYTOPIA ANNOUNCES GLOBAL WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS WITH $10,000 PRIZE POOL appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
Gaming
Polemos Announces Partnership With Guinevere Capital to Drive Monetisation and Growth Across Gaming Ecosystems

Polemos, a Web3 gaming infrastructure platform, announces a strategic partnership with Guinevere Capital, a prominent esports and gaming investment firm known for its investments and advisory roles in projects such as GiantX, iTero, Perion, Skybox, and various other projects across the industry. Guinevere Capital has established a strong reputation for its work across global Web2 gaming titles, including League of Legends, Valorant, Rocket League, and many more. This partnership aims to leverage the combined expertise of Polemos.io and Guinevere Capital to enhance and further monetise audiences across publishers, infrastructure players, gaming companies, studios, and platforms.
The collaboration will focus on integrating advanced asset management and engagement tools from Polemos.io’s Forge platform with Guinevere Capital’s extensive network and experience in both Web2 and esports ecosystems. This will create new monetisation opportunities and improve player experiences by bridging traditional gaming with blockchain-enabled innovations.
Carl Wilgenbus, CEO of Polemos.io, stated, “Partnering with Guinevere Capital marks a significant milestone in our mission to expand access to gaming rewards and unlock new revenue streams for the entire gaming industry. Together, we will empower publishers and studios to better engage their audiences and capitalize on the evolving landscape of gaming and esports.”
“Polemos has built an impressive piece of infrastructure that has plugged a huge gap in the gaming sector. We look forward to working with them to commercialise this.” said Dave Harris, a partner at Guinevere Capital. Dave’s previous experience includes investing in and operating top teams and leagues in the Riot Games and Activision Blizzard ecosystems.
Guinevere Capital’s strategic involvement will accelerate the adoption of blockchain gaming infrastructure while supporting the growth of esports and gaming communities worldwide. This alliance underscores a shared vision to drive innovation, education, and monetisation in the gaming sector by combining Web2’s reach with Web3’s potential.
Today, Polemos also started the official Token Generation Event (TGE) for the $PLMS utility token. The TGE began at 5:00 AM UTC on June 23rd, 2025, marking a step in the platform’s development to integrate blockchain technology within the gaming sector. Now available on MEXC and Uniswap, $PLMS gives users entry into the Polemos GameFi ecosystem.
The $PLMS token is designed to serve as the utility and governance token for the Polemos ecosystem. It is intended to facilitate platform functionalities, including asset management, player incentives, and participation in ecosystem governance. The TGE follows prior development phases and strategic partnerships, contributing to the framework of Polemos’ Web3 gaming offerings.
Details of the $PLMS TGE:
- Official TGE Start: June 23rd, 2025, at 5:00 AM UTC.
- Exchanges: MEXC & Uniswap.
The post Polemos Announces Partnership With Guinevere Capital to Drive Monetisation and Growth Across Gaming Ecosystems appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
Central Europe
German Federal Government Significantly Increases the Budget for Games Funding

Good news for games companies in Germany: the Federal Government’s budget plans provide for the significant increase in the games funding budget long demanded by game – The German Games Industry Association. The Federal Government’s draft budget provides for a total of 125 million euros annually from 2026. The new funds are in line with the calculations made by the game association for the funds required until the introduction of additional tax incentives for games, as announced in the coalition agreement.
“That’s encouraging! The new federal government, and above all Federal Minister for Research and responsible for games Dorothee Bär, is following up its words with action. Following the clear statements in the coalition agreement, the significant increase in games funding less than 50 days after taking office has already set a key course. The funding will ensure growth again and provide the necessary breathing space to implement the additional tax-based games funding planned in the coalition agreement at the same time. This decision is an important and encouraging sign that Germany is creating internationally comparable conditions and wants to catch up quickly in the competition between games locations,” said Felix Falk, Managing Director of game – The German Games Industry Association.
The post German Federal Government Significantly Increases the Budget for Games Funding appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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