1.
The Flash Games Market Survey 2009
The Flash Games Market Survey was created by Mochi Media in
partnership with other members of the Flash games community.
The goal of the survey is to capture and publish the first ever
census on the state of the Flash games developer industry.
Partners
• Adobe
• FlashGameLicense
• JayIsGames
• NewGrounds
1,104 completed responses
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009

2.
Survey Highlights
Flash games are a male-dominated industry, with 97% male
respondents
The industry is comprised of hobbyists, with over 70% of
devs and pubs not creating games and sites full-time
37% of respondents create both games and sites
The Flash games community is spread out and
internationally diverse, over 50% of respondents aren’t
based in the US or UK
Game development timelines are short: 24% of all games
are made in under 1 month, 49% are made in 1-3 months
High degree of interest in iPhone: 32% of Flash game
developers plan to develop on iPhone in the next year
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009

3.
The Potential of Flash Games
Flash is the ideal proving ground for experimentation and innovation in game
design and development, with over half of all games made in 3 months or
less. Web-based distribution makes it possible for developers to quickly
validate a game’s success by exposing it to millions of gamers online.
Business Examples:
• flOw, brought to console
• Alien Hominid, brought to console
• Ninja Kiwi’s Bloons, ported to iPhone
Viral Examples:
• Presidential Shoe Flinging game (http://www.techradar.com/news/world-
of-tech/-hurl-shoes-at-bush-web-games-wildly-popular-496283)
• Hero of the Hudson game (http://news.cnet.com/free-online-game-lets-
you-be-hero-of-the-hudson/)
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009

4.
Survey User Types
Publisher, 3%
Other, 3%
User Type Number Percent Developer AND
Developer 836 76% Publisher, 18%
Developer AND Publisher 197 18%
Other 34 3%
Publisher 37 3%
Developer, 76%
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009

5.
Many developers also run Flash game websites
836 Developers 197 Devs & Pubs 37 Publishers
(78%) (37%) (3%)
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009

6.
Flash games industry is predominantly male
Female, 3%
User Type Number Percent
Male 1068 97%
Female 36 3%
Male, 97%
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009

7.
66% of Flash game survey respondents are outside
of the US
United States 34%
United Kingdom 14%
Canada 8%
Australia 4%
Russian Federation 4%
Germany 2%
Indonesia 2%
Netherlands 2%
Ukraine 2%
Brazil 2%
Sweden 2%
India 1%
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009

8.
Conversations are taking place on forums and sites
across the Internet
Other (please specify)
N/A - Don't visit forums
TalkArcades Forums
NewGrounds Forums
MochiAds Forums
Kongregate Forums
FlashKit Forums
FlashGameLicense Forums
0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45%
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009

9.
Developer Questions
Developers, including
Developers & Publishers
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009

10.
70% of Flash game developers are part-time hobbyists
Yes, 30%
Devs Only Dev + Pubs Combined
Yes 28% 40% 30%
No 72% 60% 70%
No, 70%
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009

11.
Flash game community has a wide range of
experience levels, and many newcomers
Do you create Flash games full-time?
5+ years, 12%
Less than 1 year,
Devs Only Dev + Pubs Both
30%
Less than 1 year 33% 20% 30%
1-2 years 32% 33% 32% 2-5 years, 25%
2-5 years 25% 26% 25%
5+ years 10% 21% 12%
1-2 years, 32%
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009

12.
Flash game developers are prolific, 31% have
published 6 or more games
How many Flash games have you published?
35%
30%
25%
20%
15%
10%
5%
0%
1-2 games 3-5 games 6-10 games 11-20 games 21+ games N/A - never created a
Flash game
Devs Only Dev + Pubs Both
1-2 games 36% 14% 31%
3-5 games 28% 22% 27%
6-10 games 12% 21% 14%
11-20 games 7% 14% 8%
21+ games 6% 19% 9%
N/A - never created a Flash game 11% 11% 11%
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009

13.
29% of games are getting half a million plays or
more; 2% are getting 10 million+ plays
How many game plays on average do your games typically get in their lifetime?
Other (please specify)
N/A - I'm not sure or don't know
10 million or more
5 million to 10 million game plays
1 million - 5 million game plays
500k - 1 million game plays
200k - 500k game plays
0 to 200k game plays
0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35%
Devs Only Dev + Pubs Both
0 to 200k game plays 34% 22% 32%
200k - 500k game plays 15% 11% 14%
500k - 1 million game plays 8% 13% 10%
1 million - 5 million game plays 10% 22% 13%
5 million to 10 million game plays 4% 6% 4%
10 million or more 2% 4% 2%
N/A - I'm not sure or don't know 25% 18% 23%
Other (please specify) 3% 4% 3%
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009

14.
Flash game developers typically work solo or in
small teams
What size of team do you typically work with to create games?
Other (please specify):
Large company (51+ member professional team)
Medium company (11-50 member professional team)
Small company (2-10 member professional team)
Indie Collaborations (2-5 member independent team)
Myself (single developer)
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%
Dev +
Devs Only Pubs Both
Myself (single developer) 60% 48% 58%
Indie Collaborations (2-5 member independent team) 29% 35% 31%
Small company (2-10 member professional team) 7% 11% 8%
Medium company (11-50 member professional team) 1% 1% 1%
Large company (51+ member professional team) 0% 1% 1%
Other 2% 3% 2%
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009

15.
Game developers practice multiple disciplines
What aspect of game creation do you feel strong in? Select all that apply
Other (please specify)
Game Design
Business Side (partnerships, sponsorships, deals)
Game Music
Game Art
Coding
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80%
Devs Only Devs and Pubs Both
Coding 74% 89% 72%
Game Art 40% 45% 39%
Game Music 15% 19% 15%
Business Side 21% 46% 24%
Game Design 66% 76% 63%
Other 3% 9% 4%
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009

16.
Nearly three quarters of Flash games are
developed in under 3 months
How long do you typically take to create a Flash game?
Other (please
specify), 5%
12+ months, 2%
7-12 months, 4%
Less than a
month, 24%
Devs and
Devs Only Pubs Both
Less than a month 23% 26% 24%
4-6 months, 16%
1-3 months 49% 51% 49%
4-6 months 17% 11% 16%
7-12 months 4% 3% 4%
12+ months 2% 1% 2%
Other (please
specify) 4% 9% 5% 1-3 months, 49%
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009

17.
32% of Flash developers are interested in
developing on iPhone within the next year
What gaming platforms do you develop on?
120%
100%
80%
60% Yes, I currently develop on this platform
No, and do not plan to in next year
40% No, but plan to in next year
20%
0%
Flash Games Non-Flash Web Downloadable Console iPhone Other Mobile
PC
Downloadable
Flash Games Non-Flash Web PC Console iPhone Other Mobile
Yes, I currently develop on this
platform 97% 6% 13% 5% 5% 2%
No, and do not plan to in next
year 1% 59% 50% 59% 44% 57%
No, but plan to in next year 2% 14% 18% 14% 32% 14%
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009

18.
Developers are taking advantage of multiple
revenue streams for their games
How do you make money from Flash games? Select all that apply.
N/A - don't make money
Sponsorships
Devs and Micro-transactions
Devs Only Pubs Both
Ads in game 58% 76% 61%
Licensing
Ads on website 20% 70% 31%
Custom game dev 20% 32% 23%
Licensing 26% 48% 31% Custom game dev
Micro-transactions 6% 11% 7%
Sponsorships 43% 51% 45% Ads on website
N/A - don't make
money 25% 12% 22%
Ads in game
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009

19.
How much money do you make EACH MONTH
from developing games?
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
$0 to $500 $501 - 1,000 $1,001 - $5,000 $5,001 - $10,000 $10,000 - $25,000 $25,000 and up N/A
Devs Only Devs and Pubs Both
$0 to $500 56% 47% 54%
$501 - 1,000 8% 12% 9%
$1,001 - $5,000 11% 17% 12%
$5,001 - $10,000 3% 6% 4%
$10,000 - $25,000 1% 2% 1%
$25,000 and up 1% 3% 1%
N/A 20% 15% 19%
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009

20.
Typical prices for Flash game sponsorships &
licenses
Average sponsorship prices for developers is
$2,031 based on 327 responses
• 238 developer responses, average is $1,957
• 89 developer & publisher responses with an average
of $2,229.
Average licensing price for developers is $819.92
based on 225 responses
• 150 developer responses, average is $745.62
• 85 developer & publisher responses with an average
of $926.42.
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009

21.
Top sources of developer revenue today are sponsorships,
followed by ads in games and custom game development
N/A - don't make money
Devs Sponsorships
Only Devs and Pubs Both
Ads in game 23% 20% 22%
Ads on Micro-transactions
website 5% 21% 8%
Custom game
development 11% 18% 13% Licensing
Licensing 4% 4% 4%
Micro- Custom game development
transactions 2% 1% 1%
Sponsorships 31% 26% 29%
N/A - don't Ads on website
make money 21% 9% 17%
Ads in game
0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35%
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009

22.
Publisher Questions
Publishers, including
Developers & Publishers
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009

23.
Flash game website owners are predominantly
part-time
Do you create Flash game websites full-time?
Pubs Dev + Yes, 29%
Only Pubs Combined
Yes 27% 29% 29%
No 73% 71% 71%
No, 71%
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009

24.
Almost half of all publishers have been creating
Flash game websites for less than a year
How long have you been creating Flash gaming websites?
5+ years, 9%
Pubs Dev +
Only Pubs Both
Less than 1 2-5 years, 18%
year 51% 44% 45%
Less than 1 year,
1-2 years 24% 29% 28% 45%
2-5 years 22% 18% 18%
5+ years 3% 10% 9%
1-2 years, 28%
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009

25.
Publishers typically manage 1-2 websites
How many gaming websites do you own?
100%
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
1-2 sites 3-5 sites 6-10 sites 11-20 sites 21+ sites N/A - never created a
Flash sites
Pubs Only Dev + Pubs Both
1-2 sites 59% 100% 93%
3-5 sites 24% 0% 4%
6-10 sites 5% 0% 1%
11-20 sites 0% 0% 0%
21+ sites 0% 0% 0%
N/A - never created a
Flash sites 11% 0% 2%
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009

26.
More than half of all publisher websites receive
less than 200k visitors each month
How many unique visitors visit your site(s) each month?
Other (please specify)
N/A - I'm not sure or prefer not to
Pubs Dev + disclose
Only Pubs Both
0 to 200k unique visitors 51% 63% 61% 10 million or more unique visitors
200k - 500k unique visitors 16% 10% 11%
500k - 1 million unique visitors 0% 5% 4% 5 million to 10 million unique visitors
1 million - 5 million unique
visitors 14% 3% 4%
1 million - 5 million unique visitors
5 million to 10 million unique
visitors 3% 1% 1%
10 million or more unique 500k - 1 million unique visitors
visitors 3% 2% 2%
N/A - I'm not sure or prefer
200k - 500k unique visitors
not to disclose 14% 11% 12%
Other (please specify) 0% 4% 4%
0 to 200k unique visitors
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009

27.
Publishers predominantly work alone
Do you manage your website by yourself, or with a team?
Other (please specify):
Large team (50+ members)
Medium team (6-50 members)
Small team (2-5 members)
Myself (single publisher)
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
Pubs Only Dev + Pubs Both
Myself (single
publisher) 68% 93% 88%
Small team (2-5
members) 19% 0% 4%
Medium team (6-50
members) 5% 0% 1%
Large team (50+
members) 3% 0% 1%
Other (please specify): 5% 7% 7%
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009

28.
Publishers are almost entirely dependent on
advertising to make revenue
How do you make money from your Flash gaming website? Select all that apply.
Other (please specify)
N/A - don't use any of these
Selling physical goods to visitors (e.g., t-shirts, stickers, etc.)
Selling virtual goods to visitors (e.g., subscriptions, avatars)
Selling downloadable games to visitors (e.g., BigFishGames, Real)
Ads on website
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90%
Pubs Only Dev + Pubs Both
Ads on website 81% 79% 79%
Selling downloadable games to
visitors (e.g., BigFishGames, Real) 14% 11% 11%
Selling virtual goods to visitors (e.g.,
subscriptions, avatars) 3% 8% 7%
Selling physical goods to visitors (e.g.,
t-shirts, stickers, etc.) 3% 9% 8%
N/A - don't use any of these 11% 15% 15%
Other (please specify) 14% 6% 7%
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009

29.
Publisher Monthly Revenues
How much money do you make EACH MONTH from your gaming websites?
Please answer this for all your sites if you have more than one.
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
$0 to $500 $501 - 1,000 $1,001 - $5,000 $5,001 - $10,000 $10,000 - $25,000 $25,000 and up N/A
Pubs Dev +
Only Pubs Both
$0 to $500 51% 70% 67%
$501 - 1,000 8% 5% 5%
$1,001 - $5,000 14% 6% 7%
$5,001 - $10,000 3% 3% 3%
$10,000 - $25,000 5% 1% 2%
$25,000 and up 0% 2% 2%
N/A 19% 13% 14%
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009

30.
Top Publisher Revenue Stream is Advertising on Site
What are your top 3 ways of making money from game development,
ranked by revenue each month?
N/A - Not Applicable
Selling physical goods
Selling virtual goods
Selling downloadable games
Ads on website
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80%
Pubs Only Dev + Pubs Both
Ads on website 76% 76% 76%
Selling downloadable games 5% 6% 6%
Selling virtual goods 5% 2% 2%
Selling physical goods 3% 2% 2%
N/A - Not Applicable 5% 13% 11%
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009

31.
Publishers rely on game sponsorships and link
exchanges to drive traffic
How do you get traffic to your website? Select all that apply.
Other (please specify)
Sponsor games created by others that link back to your site
Create your own games that link back to your site
Link Exchange with Other Sites
Banner Traffic Exchange Network (e.g., Funklicks)
Paid advertisements (e.g., Google AdWords)
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%
Pubs Only Dev + Pubs Both
Paid advertisements (e.g.,
Google AdWords) 41% 24% 26%
Banner Traffic Exchange
Network (e.g., Funklicks) 35% 18% 20%
Link Exchange with Other
Sites 59% 41% 44%
Create your own games that
link back to your site 14% 75% 66%
Sponsor games created by
others that link back to your
site 22% 13% 14%
Other (please specify) 30% 15% 17%
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009

32.
Sponsorship & Licensing Stats
Average sponsorship for publishers is $619 based
on 25 responses
• 6 publisher responses, average is $1,335
• 19 developer & publisher responses with an average
of $393
How many games do you sponsor each month?
• 34 responses, average number of responses is 10.9
games
Average licensing cost is $2,055 based on 10
responses
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009

33.
Contact
Contact Info
Corey Lewis or Christopher Schreiber
LaunchSquad
(415) 625-8555
mochimedia@launchsquad.com
Source: Flash Games Market Survey 7/2009