The mobile games market is dominated by copying existing games rather than developing original games. This is caused by a lack of ownership and patent protection, which hinders market development. The establishment of an ownership and patent system is necessary to prevent monopolization by large companies and create a level playing field.
Anyone who owns a smartphone has probably played a mobile game at some point. These games have become so ingrained in our daily lives that they have become the primary means of entertainment to utilize our spare time. Thanks to their simplicity of gameplay and anytime, anywhere accessibility, mobile games are no longer limited to a certain age group or gamer demographic. However, many people play games without knowing who the developers are. Users simply choose the game that appeals to them more among the many similar games, and there is little awareness of ownership and patents when it comes to mobile games.
Anipang is a popular game that most South Koreans have heard of at least once. However, many people may not recognize SundayToz, the company that developed Anipang. This is because ownership and patents are not very important in the mobile game market. There are many existing mobile games that are similar in style to Anipang, including Bejeweled by overseas company PopCap Games, which was released before Anipang. Nevertheless, Anipang is often called a copycat in South Korea because it was the first game to become popular in partnership with KakaoTalk.
If we take an example from another market, in the cell phone market, ownership and patents are highly valued to prevent such situations. That’s why people are very familiar with the companies Samsung and Apple. Under the protection of ownership and patents, Samsung and Apple are engaged in endless development and competition, improving the quality and functionality of their phones every year. In the mobile game market, on the other hand, without the protection of ownership and patents, companies copy each other and only focus on who can attract more users to their games.
Why does this situation persist? Why do so many companies copy existing games instead of developing their own original games? There are a number of mobile games that have made waves in Korea. “Anipang”, ‘Dragonflights’, and many other mobile games were so popular that they even became an issue at one point. However, as time passed, their popularity naturally faded. Unlike computer games, mobile games tend to have a relatively short-lived craze.
This phenomenon is closely related to the business model of mobile game developers. Because the mobile game market is characterized by rapidly changing trends and a focus on short-cycle monetization, companies choose to copy existing popular games for short-term profits rather than invest resources in the long term. Many mobile game development companies don’t invest a lot of time and money in new games that they’re not sure will be a hit, and instead copy the current popular games. The idea is to promote a product with the same content but different packaging and capitalize on its popularity.
There’s also a high level of tolerance for these games among users. Familiar game mechanics and interfaces make it easier to accept new games, and as a result, they don’t notice the differences between similar games. The result of this phenomenon is that users prefer to play games from the companies they are most familiar with, given the lack of diversity in the mobile gaming market. Familiarity is not the only criterion for choosing a game, but it’s true that games from large companies with deep pockets and big promotions are more familiar to us.
Even if a mobile game company develops and releases an original and new game, if a large company has a similar game and invests heavily in promotion, people will naturally be drawn to it. One example is the game “Candy Crush Saga” by an overseas company. “Candy Crush Saga” is a game that puzzle lovers are familiar with, and the content is almost identical to ‘Anipang 2’. Candy Crush Saga was first released overseas, and its popularity gradually spread to Korea. And just as the popularity of these games was starting to grow in Korea, “Anipang 2” was released and heavily promoted. “The public, who didn’t know Candy Crush Saga, recognized Anipang 2 as a new and original game, and it became very popular.
This phenomenon creates an environment where it is difficult for companies to protect the ownership rights of their games. This reduces the incentive to develop original and new games, which in the long run threatens the diversity of the market and hinders the development of the game industry. In conclusion, a mobile game market that prioritizes competition for promotion over competition for content is stifling market development and preventing new companies from growing.
If large companies can take away the originality of small companies without any regulation, the large companies will continue to grow while the small companies will continue to regress. Eventually, the smaller companies will be driven out of the market along with their originality, and the larger companies will have no game to copy, resulting in reduced growth. Meanwhile, other markets are protecting small companies’ original products with patents to prevent large companies from stealing their uniqueness. This creates an environment where companies can compete fairly in the market, which drives the development of the market as a whole.
The concepts of ownership and patents are also important for the development of the mobile gaming market. Ownership and patents don’t just protect the growth of small companies, they also encourage large companies to develop original games in order to stay in the game. In addition, ownership and patent protection will encourage all companies in the mobile game market to offer more interesting and original games to users, which will drive the market forward.
Therefore, the establishment of ownership rights is essential for the development of the market and the growth of companies. Originality is a form of property, and this property needs to be protected from the strongest players. The concept of ownership and patents should be clearly established in the mobile game market, which is dominated by the strongest players. By recognizing ownership, many companies, not just small ones, will have an incentive to develop original games. This would contribute significantly to the growth of companies and the development of the market as a whole.
It’s also important that governments and related organizations play a role in supporting this. Legal frameworks need to be strengthened to clarify the concepts of ownership and patents, and strong sanctions need to be imposed on companies that violate them. Such proactive intervention by governments will help to create a level playing field, protect innovative ideas, and ultimately enhance competitiveness in the global marketplace.
