App, mobile games sharing spikes during Eid

During the last Eid more people shared peer-to-peer apps and mobile games than ever across the Middle East and North Africa, turning mobile gaming into mainstream entertainment, said a study on app and game sharing behaviour in the region.

In Saudi Arabia, there was a 30% increase in the sharing of strategy game applications, and a 120% increase in the sharing of card games, said the study by SHAREit.

The study looks at the different sorts of mobile apps and games that have become popular among the people of all age groups in the region, and how it will affect market growth.

Arunabh Madhur, Regional VP & Head Business EMEA at SHAREit, said: “Eid is one of the biggest festive seasons in the MENA region, and (it) provides marketers with a good opportunity to grow their business through marketing campaigns. Being the No.1 file sharing app in the emerging markets, SHAREit analysed its app’s heightened sharing trends during Eid in the MENA region and presented its first-ever app sharing insights report.”

“SHAREit has achieved massive growth globally and the strategy for the new fiscal year is in line with the last year. Leveraging the file-sharing feature, huge user base and strong position as a trusted source of referrals in communities, SHAREit influences the app sharing behaviour of its users via recommendations and suggestions, and encourages them to share more apps in their network, driving user acquisition for mobile app-based businesses,” added Madhur.

During last year’s Eid, P2P sharing via SHAREit accounted for tens of millions of app downloads in MENA. The first-of-its-kind study is useful for brands to design campaigns that will help them get a better return on their marketing spending. 

In all the countries in the region, a dramatic increase in social and communication applications was observed as people celebrated the occasion by sending and receiving greetings. In Saudi Arabia, there was a 30% increase in social app sharing. Working hours are decreased during Ramadan, and as individuals return to work thereafter, several countries have observed an increase in tools and productivity apps. 

In Qatar, the number of people who share shopping apps has increased by 42%.

Mrwan Gharzeddine, Country Director for MENA at SHAREit, said: “The future of app sharing and gaming in the MENA region is tremendously exciting. Factors such as expansion of gaming industry, rising consumer spend on mobile games, increase in number of mobile game users, surging ownership of smartphones and high internet penetration rate are driving the growth in the mobile gaming industry, especially during holiday periods such as Eid. With mobile gaming poised for huge progress, SHAREit offers a promising opportunity to fuel the transformation of digital lifestyle by working with gaming apps across the region,” added Gharzeddine.

There were a 57% spike in Morocco, 36% in Egypt, and 32% in Algeria. Morocco (39%), Kuwait (32%), and Qatar (25%) have the biggest number of users, followed by Egypt (24%), Saudi Arabia (23%), Algeria (21%), and Oman (13%) who love the social contact and community element of arcade games. 

Casual games, which are slightly less popular than action and arcade games, appeared to be the flavour of the season in Morocco (40%), Qatar (21%), Egypt (16%), Algeria (12%), and Saudi Arabia (11%) as a way to relax over the holidays.