Interviews
Rewarded User Acquisition: Transforming Mobile Gaming with James Crabb, Head of Gaming Partnerships at Almedia
Introduction:
In the rapidly evolving world of mobile gaming, innovation is the key to staying ahead. Rewarded User Acquisition (UA) is emerging as a game-changing strategy, enabling developers to attract and retain players by incentivizing engagement. At the forefront of this movement is James Crabb, Head of Gaming Partnerships at Almedia, a leader in Rewarded UA through platforms like Freecash. With over a decade of experience in mobile gaming and partnerships with major titles, James provides invaluable insights into the potential and challenges of Rewarded UA, the shifting landscape of the mobile games industry, and trends shaping the future.
Rewarded UA: Transforming Mobile Gaming Engagement – An Interview with James Crabb, Head of Gaming Partnerships at Almedia
Can you describe Rewarded UA to our readers?
Rewarded User Acquisition is a marketing strategy commonly used in mobile app and game development. It involves incentivizing users with rewards like Amazon or Google Play vouchers for engaging with an app or game. This approach not only increases engagement but also helps developers acquire high-quality users more likely to make in-app purchases or interact with ads. Platforms like Freecash excel at scaling this model without relying on third-party networks, creating a frictionless experience for studios.
“The key to success in Rewarded UA,” James explains, “is continuously testing different rewards and strategies, adding deeper-level events to maintain user engagement and maximize outcomes.”
What is your career background?
With over 13 years in the mobile gaming space, James started his journey at Kabam, working on the successful Kingdoms of Camelot: Battle for the North. He has since held pivotal roles at renowned studios like Outfit7 (My Talking Tom), Huuuge Games (Huuuge Casino), and Wargaming (World of Tanks, World of Warships). Recently, he ventured into the web3 space with MoonGaming (Medieval Empires).
James joined Almedia nine months ago, diving deep into Rewarded UA through the Freecash platform. “We’ve seen tremendous growth as developers realize how scalable our audience is,” he shares.
How do developers benefit from giving away cash?
“The idea that developers are ‘giving away cash’ is a misconception,” James explains. Instead, developers pay a cost per install (CPI) to platforms like Freecash. This investment is structured to drive user engagement with short-, mid-, and long-term activities. As players progress through challenging levels motivated by rewards, developers monetize through in-app purchases and ad engagement.
By carefully designing reward structures, developers ensure they acquire users who remain invested and engaged in their games while generating revenue.
Why is Rewarded UA growing?
Traditional UA channels have become competitive, expensive, and difficult to scale, especially after privacy regulations like Apple’s App Tracking Transparency. Rewarded UA, by contrast, bypasses these challenges, offering direct access to users keen to engage with games and earn rewards.
James notes, “Rewarded UA platforms provide an invaluable alternative, especially for studios looking to scale effectively amidst increasing privacy constraints.”
You’re based in Berlin; how is the mobile games industry performing locally?
Berlin continues to thrive as a gaming hub with notable studios like Wooga, Wargaming Mobile, and Ubisoft’s Kolibri Games. It also fosters a vibrant ecosystem of newer studios such as TrailMix, Metacore, and Playflux. “The city’s talent pool spans developers, producers, designers, and marketing specialists, all supporting the local industry,” James says.
What are some common misconceptions about ‘Rewarded UA’?
Many in the industry still equate Rewarded UA with the outdated concept of incentivized traffic, which focused on boosting app store rankings without delivering quality users.
James points out that modern Rewarded UA is far more sophisticated. “Platforms like Freecash are delivering measurable results for studios like Plarium, where new user registrations rose by 30%, and the lifetime value (LTV) of users was 20% higher compared to other channels.”
While the model is powerful, James emphasizes the importance of anti-fraud measures to maintain trust and quality.
At Almedia, you lead gaming partnerships. How do you approach building connections in the games industry?
“The gaming industry is incredibly well-connected, so we focus on building relationships for the long term,” James explains. Events play a significant role in fostering these connections, and maintaining authenticity in conversations is key. “Don’t treat discussions as transactions; view them as opportunities to build meaningful partnerships.”
As we look toward 2025, what industry trends are on your radar?
James predicts a more equitable and accessible mobile games industry, driven by policy changes like Epic’s court victory against Google. Additionally, he foresees a surge in user-generated content (UGC), with platforms like Roblox and Unreal Editor for Fortnite paving the way for new creative opportunities.
“Increased payouts to creators and emerging platforms to support UGC will be a significant trend,” he adds.
Conclusion
Rewarded UA is reshaping mobile gaming, providing scalable and effective user acquisition strategies while enhancing the gaming experience. With industry leaders like James Crabb championing innovative approaches, the future of mobile gaming looks brighter than ever. From advancements in Rewarded UA to new opportunities in UGC, developers have much to look forward to as the gaming landscape evolves.
The post Rewarded User Acquisition: Transforming Mobile Gaming with James Crabb, Head of Gaming Partnerships at Almedia appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
Fast Track, the leading SaaS technology company and CRM provider in the iGaming industry, has unveiled the second instalment of its Inside Out video series.
Titled “Ain’t No Rest for the Wicked” the interview features CEO and Co-founder Simon Lidzén in a candid, behind-the-scenes discussion about the company’s growth, challenges, and vision for the future.
In the 30-minute video, Simon reflects on Fast Track’s nearly ten-year journey: “Success to me is about setting goals and achieving them. This year has been intense, but incredibly rewarding. From scaling Fast Track to launching groundbreaking products like Rewards, we’re just getting started.”
The conversation explores the launch of Rewards, Fast Track’s promotional ecosystem that integrates CRM with gamification to deliver engaging and personalised player experiences. Simon also discusses the company’s rapid global expansion and the challenges of scaling leadership within a fast-growing organisation. Looking ahead to 2025, he highlights Fast Track’s focus on leveraging AI to redefine CRM and customer engagement.
Simon’s reflections also touch on the company’s culture: “Fast Track is built on relentless innovation and a team that thrives on solving challenges. Seeing how much we’ve grown and how far we’ve come makes this journey so exciting.”
For those unfamiliar with Fast Track, the company is a high-growth SaaS leader, known for pioneering the use of AI to deliver personalised experiences to customers. Its software empowers companies to automate marketing and operational workflows, enabling teams to focus on strategy and innovation. Fast Track is reshaping CRM for iGaming, setting a new standard for customer engagement.
Watch the interview here: https://2ly.link/23JyZ
The post Fast Track CEO Shares Honest Reflections in New Interview: Ain’t No Rest for the Wicked appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
As we enter 2025, what unique opportunities do you see for WA.Technology in the LatAm iGaming market?
The iGaming market in Latin America is experiencing rapid transformation, and this dynamic shift presents considerable opportunities for companies with the right strategy and adaptability.
We are witnessing a shift from informal, semi-professional operations to a growing demand for a formal, structured, and professional gaming industry that can meet the higher expectations emerging from both regulators and consumers.
At WA.Technology, we are perfectly positioned to leverage our extensive local knowledge to achieve just that. Our team has been working across the region for years, from Mexico to Brazil, Colombia, and beyond, which gives us a unique edge in navigating the regulatory complexities and unique behavioural dynamics of this evolving landscape.
This authentic regional understanding not only allows us to stay ahead of market trends but also empowers us to innovate in a way that aligns with global best practices while being sensitive to local cultures, customs, and regulations. As the LatAm gaming market continues to mature, we are ready to support operators in a more structured, regulated, and growth-oriented environment.
How does WA.Technology plan to maintain its progress across the region in 2025?
Our approach to sustained growth in Latin America is driven by the expertise of our team, who bring years of experience from across the region. The team at WA.Technology has collectively worked across a variety of LatAm gaming markets, gaining firsthand knowledge of local regulations and consumer preferences. This wealth of experience enables us to navigate the ever-changing landscape with agility and precision.
As the region continues to evolve, we will continue to integrate global best practices while remaining flexible enough to address the unique needs of each local market. Our strategy at WA.Technology largely focuses on building close relationships with various local stakeholders, refining our offerings based on real-time feedback and ensuring our presence continues to make a long-lasting difference in the region.
We are committed to driving long-term growth, building strong partnerships and providing the best possible value to our clients across Latin America.
For operators looking to enter Latin America in 2025, what are some of the key trends/nuances they need to be aware of? And how is WA.Technology helping them to navigate these?
Entering the Latin American market in 2025 presents a variety of opportunities for growth. However, operators looking to make the most of what this region has to offer must carefully consider local regulations, consumer behaviour, and cultural differences in each country. After all, LatAm is not one homogenous region – each country has its own unique dynamics at play.
Regulatory frameworks continue to evolve rapidly, with each individual regulator in the region setting its own rules, meaning that operators must be highly adaptable and well-prepared for any future legislative changes. But regulations aren’t the only challenge.
Understanding local consumer habits, preferences, and cultural nuances is equally critical to building a successful operation. For example, the products players enjoy in Brazil are likely to be completely different to those favoured by Mexican bettors.
At WA.Technology, we help operators navigate these complexities by offering solutions that are fully compliant with local laws and tailored to meet the diverse needs of Latin American consumers.
We don’t see ourselves as just a technology provider; we want to be a trusted partner, supporting operators in their journey to understand the regulatory environment and local market dynamics, ensuring they’re well-positioned for long-term success.
With Brazil now live, how does WA.Technology plan to gain an edge in what is likely to be a highly competitive market?
Brazil is undoubtedly the flagship market in Latin America, and we’ve been preparing for this moment for some time. With a market of such size and potential, competition is bound to be hard. However, we are confident that our extensive local presence and tailored approach will give us a distinct edge unmatched by any other provider on the market.
We’ve made significant investments in Brazil, building a team that is highly knowledgeable about the local market and deeply embedded in the regulatory landscape. I am proud to say our team has worked extremely hard to ensure we were ready in time for the new regulations in Brazil and that we are in a position now to grow even further in this market as a result. With dedicated local offices, a strong team of regulatory experts and seasoned professionals with operational expertise, we are well-equipped to navigate the complexities of Brazil’s rapidly growing iGaming market.
Our extensive knowledge of the local market and commitment to delivering innovative, market-specific solutions allows us to provide licensed operators with the tools they need to succeed in this competitive space.
How will your approach to Brazil differ from that of the wider LatAm market?
While Brazil is undeniably one of the largest and most significant markets in Latin America, our approach to the region as a whole is both comprehensive and tailored to the unique characteristics of each country.
We recognise that Latin America is a highly diverse and dynamic market where each country presents distinct opportunities, challenges, and regulatory landscapes.
At WA.Technology, we adopt a market-specific strategy across our entire business, ensuring that we provide localised solutions that meet the unique needs of each country while maintaining a strong, responsive presence in all key markets.
Our team brings extensive experience from working in countries such as Argentina, Chile, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, and Mexico. In fact, we recently expanded our footprint by opening offices in Mexico City, which allows us to stay closely connected to local developments and offer even more tailored support to our partners in this market.
Mexico is particularly important to us in terms of future growth, and we view it as a key focus for WA.Technology alongside Brazil. Our integrated, flexible approach ensures we can remain agile across the entire region, responding effectively to each market’s specific demands while maintaining a cohesive regional strategy.
What are your goals for expanding WA.Technology’s footprint in LatAm over the next 12 months? And how do you plan to achieve these?
Looking ahead to the rest of 2025, our key goals for expanding WA.Technology’s footprint in Latin America is rooted in two fundamental pillars: extensive market knowledge and strong local presence.
As the region evolves at a rapid pace, staying ahead of market shifts requires constant attention. Our strategy is to maintain a physical presence in every major market, fostering relationships with local stakeholders, regulators, and operators. By doing this, we are able to anticipate changes in the wider market and position ourselves as a proactive, solutions-driven partner, ensuring that our partners can retain their competitive edge.
We aim to further solidify our relationships with key players across the region and remain highly engaged in local markets, adapting our solutions in real-time to meet emerging needs.
Our focus on continuous engagement ensures that we’re always in tune with the evolving landscape, positioning WA.Technology to lead the way in driving innovation and delivering value in Latin America.
The post Patricio Molloy: WA.Technology is ready to raise the bar for LatAm in 2025 appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry in the Americas.
Tom Walton, Director at technology consultancy, Burendo, shares how operators can achieve sustainable profitability with learnings from other sectors
Operators who are merging and acquiring other businesses, launching new products or even integrating third-party technologies, can find themselves navigating complex internal processes. It is a complex large-scale challenge. Where M&As are commonplace, brand consolidation can be critical when securing sustainable profitability while planning for higher returns in the future. Within the emerging LatAm and US markets, acquisition remains a key focus. A common issue, regardless of geography, is the challenges presented by outdated or fragmented platforms and systems, a major obstacle in the growth trajectory.
In many cases, fundamental changes in how the organisation functions: its people, processes and technology holds the key to better value, higher profits, operational efficiency and reduced risk. By addressing these complexities with proven experience, technology consultants can support operators to be successful in their strategic initiatives.
Agility in competitive markets
To remain competitive in an ever-changing market, operators must move fast and with agility to refine their offering. A constant eye on retention, acquisition and regulatory changes is paramount to avoid financial impact. Despite this risk, research conducted by Accenture in 2022 found that 95% of B2B and B2C C-level executives believe their customers are changing faster than they can change their business, indicating most operators risk falling behind. This poses the question of how this can be supported.
The value of technology consultancies is in enabling businesses to extract greater value from existing resources through a confident understanding of what good looks like. Bringing external ideas gathered through experience, exemplary resources from process to people, can demonstrate what good looks like. More importantly, it shortens the timeline to achieving real goals in the organisation. Being under resourced or lacking the skills needed across these challenges makes it difficult to gain an overarching perspective particularly within a siloed approach.
At Burendo, we leverage more than 40 years of cross-sector experience. We are not only working with some of the biggest operators in betting and gaming, but partner with other highly regulated industries including finance and healthcare. We have helped operators across many initiatives helping them to realise cost savings or increased revenue in a matter of weeks. We pride ourselves in ensuring we leave a lasting positive impact on the culture, enabling our partners to be empowered to carry on our work.
The retention battle
Many operators are too busy with day-to-day tasks or overwhelmed with where to start when it comes to transformation and building a cutting-edge user experience. An example of the gap between capacity and demand is the rising popularity of in-play betting. During live sports, the speed in which players can find and place their bet is critical. Here, streamlined processes that allow for quick innovation will correlate with customer satisfaction, resulting in higher retention rates.
A fresh perspective for lasting change
A successful approach to optimisation requires taking the challenge and viewing it from an experienced and innovative angle. Our partners truly benefit from best practice and valuable lessons derived from other sectors. Through experience we have found that these challenges are not exclusive to betting & gaming and so the ability to apply these learnings drive success.
Managing complex systems and large volumes of data is a common obstacle. By applying these cross-sector principles through working with technology consultants, operators can gain valuable insight into re-engineering platforms and the skills needed, to meet both current and future demands.
Building exceptional, scalable and adaptable architectures ensures that businesses can continue to grow and evolve as the industry changes. This forward-thinking approach positions operators ahead of the curve, meaning they are poised for success in the years to come and have the agility to address any challenges or opportunities that arise.
Creating lasting change requires more than just solving immediate problems. Our goal for our clients is to maintain high levels of efficiency long after an initial transformation is complete. By empowering teams to implement and sustain improvements, operators can maintain continuous growth and unlock growth worth tens of millions of pounds, far outweighing their cost of delivery.
The focus must now shift to building stronger, more Agile organisations that can adapt to changing market conditions. Sustainable efficiency enables operators to optimise time-to-market, improve platform performance, and manage resources more effectively, creating a foundation for long-term growth.
About Burendo
Founded in 2018 and with offices in Leeds and London, Burendo is an award-winning, consultancy delivering stand-out products and services through technology. We partner with organisations to accelerate organisational value delivery and transform customer experiences.
We are pragmatic thinkers and doers who understand the operational world of organisations and customer demands. We work as a partner to give our clients the latest ideas, tools and techniques to deliver effective results that build long-term value.
For more information, you can visit the Burendo website: www.burendo.com
If you have any questions, please contact Kate Smith, Senior Digital Marketing Executive by email: [email protected]
The post Consolidating brands efficiently to achieve high growth appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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