Playdom: "It's premature to declare victory for Facebook in social and mobile"
SVP LaFontaine feels Apple and emerging markets could beat leading social network
Social gaming giants Playdom and Rockyou have dismissed sentiments that Facebook is the de-facto winner of the social and mobile gaming scene.
"Facebook's not the only game in town," stated Paul LaFontaine, Playdom's senior vice president of operations, at the Social Gaming Summit in London today.
"It plays an important part in our lives but it's premature to declare a victory for Facebook in social-mobile at this time. I'm sure Apple would also say something like that.
He also felt that other territories might ultimately prove more lucrative. "You've got Japanese networks, you've got China, you've got all these places that are as important as the US market."
RockYou head of EMEA sales Gilles Storme agreed that Facebook's ongoing push to conquer mobile as well as PCs wouldn't necessarily take down that market's other players.
"Android and Apple are probably more important for game developers on mobile than Facebook," he said.
Storme also felt that other genres might yet emerge to rival management sims' chokehold on social games.
"I think sport is definitely going to be one. There aren't any good social sports games yet. Action games as well - as the games are becoming more complex we'll probably see strategy games emerging as well."