Running Head: MARKETING PLAN FOR NEW BLUESTACKS PLATFORM

LAUNCH 1

Marketing Plan for Bluestacks Platform Launch

Firatcan KUTUK

03/11/2021
MARKETING PLAN FOR NEW BLUESTACKS PLATFORM LAUNCH

Executive Summary

This report is intended to show how Bluestacks team can successfully launch its new

platform through conducting market research, risk assessment and establishing

connections with partners, suppliers, distribution channels and government

organizations.

As of February 2021, BlueStacks have been downloaded over 1 billion times and have

more than 500 million users and have been regarded as one of the best Android

emulators for Computers. Considering the rapid growth of the video game industry and

the rise of the game platforms, Bluestacks is sure to reap the returns on investment on

global markets and compete against global key players like Steam, Google Stadia,

NVIDIA, Microsoft and so on. Moreover, Bluestacks Platform can realize the vision of

bringing community, game development, empowering players, building fan engagement

has been condensed into a single platform that promised to be for everyone.

Keywords: Bluestacks, video game marketing, product management, product

marketing, the gaming industry

Demand Analysis
MARKETING PLAN FOR NEW BLUESTACKS PLATFORM LAUNCH

Nowadays, the demand for video games is more than ever and is expected to

grow as companies race each other to obtain new generation consumers like Gen Z or

millennials, and increase creativity and product portfolios, convenience and

accessibility while minimizing the associated costs and gain competitive advantage.

According to WEPC, The Video Gaming Industry is now estimated to be worth $159.3

Billion in 2020, which is a sizeable increase of 9.3% from 2019. This is a marked

difference in what was predicted for the industry with 2016 statistics forecasting a total

worth of $90.07 Billion for the same period – a huge 76.8% difference between the two

figures. Current forecasts estimate the video gaming industry to be worth $200 Billion

by 2023 (2020). Therefore, new platforms emerged due to the convenience of use, sense

of community and ease of communication over the years since they brought sellers and

consumers( in this case developers, publishers and gamers) together. There are

prominent players in both console platforms like Nintendo, Playstation and PC like

Steam whereas Microsoft’s Xbox has competed in both. On the PC side, the most

dominant player was Steam. At one point, Steam was extremely profitable and they

controlled 70% of the market in 2011.

Therefore, the video game industry has emerged from CDs to digital sales and

now emerging into Cloud Game Streaming platforms. With the recent trends, new

players like Google Stadia, GeForce Now, Xbox Game Pass have already partnered

with many studios and publishers and now offering many recent titles on their

platforms. According to Grand View Research, The global cloud gaming market size

was valued at USD 0.47 billion in 2020. It is expected to expand at a compound annual

growth rate (CAGR) of 48.2% from 2021 to 2027(2020). The increasing popularity of

cloud gaming along with the prevalence of enhanced cross-platform gameplay, which

improves gaming experience, is anticipated to drive market growth. The increasing

MARKETING PLAN FOR NEW BLUESTACKS PLATFORM LAUNCH

penetration of internet services and easy access to games on the cloud are also

contributing to the growing demand for cloud gaming. Moreover, network infrastructure

developments such as 5G offer lower latency and higher bandwidth, which enables

gamers to seamlessly stream XR (augmented reality and virtual reality) gaming.Besides,

the proliferation of smartphones across the globe is further expected to drive market

growth.

U.S Cloud Gaming Market Size, by product type from 2016 to 2027 (2021). Retrieved

March 10 , 2021, from Grandviewresearch.com

General Strategies

With the right strategies, Bluestacks could be very successful in this promising

industry. Therefore, a proper launch marketing plan will also ensure brand reputation,

brand recognition, lower risk of product failure, new business leads and loyal

customers. Therefore, Bluestacks should start with developing a solid Pre-Launch

Strategy. Some of the major steps as follows;

- In order to create the buzz, Bluestacks need to host live events and webinars around
MARKETING PLAN FOR NEW BLUESTACKS PLATFORM LAUNCH

the launch of the new platform to onboard key people to spread the word. Therefore,

giving discount coupons to participants could be a viable option

- Identifying the key influencers from the industry is a must. Bluestacks should also

look at their track records and engagements with competitors like Steam to assess

their ability to create brand awareness and trust. As we all know that today's younger

audience doesn't trust advertisements as much as previous generations did. Among

millennials, only 1% are ready to put their faith in ads. Additionally, many people on

the internet now use an ad blocker, meaning that they will not see the advertisements.

- Gather followers across all social media channels and keep them in wait with

countdowns to major releases, fake or real leaks, news releases, promotional items

and so on.

- Utilising content marketing to bring as much traffic to Bluestacks Platform website is

a must. This will not only enable a relatively easier launch but also assess the potential

success/return of the investment.

- Using global and local PR agencies to access PR channels is also essential. This will

not only increase the brand recognition industry-wide but also help with the early

adoption of the product and unique technologies and features of the Bluestacks

Platform.

- Identifying key partners, suppliers, publishers, agencies is the key. Therefore,

Bluestacks must develop strong B2B channels to ensure the supply, distribution and

promotion of its content for long-term success of the platform.

Target Customers

In order to ensure the success of the release of the new Bluestacks Platform,

Bluestacks should identify the target customers and their needs. At a high level,
MARKETING PLAN FOR NEW BLUESTACKS PLATFORM LAUNCH

Bluestacks Platform’s target customers are PC gamers with ages ranging from 12-50 but

the specific need of these customers can be explored through market research, surveys

and social media analytics. Therefore, Bluestacks should pay attention to features

offered by competitors and offer better, more innovative solutions to satisfy its users.

For example, successful features like Steam Direct can be offered with new features to

developers and partners while other failed solutions like Steam Greenlight( they failed

due to poor review system and attack of review bots) should be avoided, take lessons

from it and provide better solutions for rating and review system..

Moreover, other general features required for these type of platforms are

including but not limited to; user-friendly UI, referrals, ease of transactions,

innovativeness( accepting payments via bitcoin could be an option), great content

selection and variation, availability of recent titles, great recommendation system, wish-

list/crowdfunding systems, gifting, etc. All of these features would help Bluestacks to

monetize its content by helping to build a reputation and help customers have a better

experience.

Competition Analysis

The gaming industry is a highly competitive market filled with direct and

indirect competitors to Bluestacks Platform. In order to beat the competition, Bluestacks

should study their strengths and weaknesses carefully and develop its marketing

strategies, USP( Unique sales proposition) and enhance its product development

accordingly. To illustrate, Steam not only sells digital games on its platform but also

allows consumers to purchase photo, video, music, avatar editing tools to

improve productivity. A feature like this could be essential for Bluestacks Platform and

the product development team should highly consider it if the company wants to go toe

to toe with Steam. Moreover, many of these competitors offer a value proposition that
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includes: providing consumers a marketplace of games available for a range of devices

and a platform where consumers can be part of a community to create and share content

about different games.

Therefore, the

platform should naturally have room to

offer cloud game streaming as its the

future of the gaming industry.

Half a Billion Dollars in 2020: The Cloud Gaming Market Evolves as Consumer
MARKETING PLAN FOR NEW BLUESTACKS PLATFORM LAUNCH

Engagement & Spending Soar (2021). Retrieved March 10 , 2021, from newzoo.com

Unique Sales Proposition

After analyzing the competition and our target customers, now it is time for

Bluestacks Platform to build its unique sales proposition. USP should concentrate on

customer’s needs, competitor’s offerings, distinctive benefits of Bluestacks Platform

and brand promise. Various strategies could be implemented to eat up to market share

and utilize USP. For example, right now Steam takes 30% of the revenue share of the

games that are featured on its platform. If Bluestacks wants to undercut and attract more

publishers, developers and penetrate the market, it can take a much lesser commission.

( This rate can be determined after a feasibility study). Or Bluestacks can offer

exclusive content by partnering with some of the studios and publishers. Another USP

that Bluestacks can offer is availability. To Illustrate, Apple has very strict rules for IOS

to feature could gaming streaming services and denied the competitors like Xbox Game

Pass. Bluestacks can use this as an advantage and approach Apple to feature its product

on IOS. Also, competitive pricing is another option. Steam currently prices AAA titles

at $59.99 and indie games around $15$-$30. By doing so , they take a shot at console

gamers by offering deep discounts for the same titles available on both PC and console

platforms.The same strategy could be utilized against Steam by offering the same

products at discounts or free with membership/subscription services ( This strategy

must be sustainable in the long term),

Beta Testing

This step helps to prevent bugs and other issues before Bluestacks Platform is

launched in the market. We have seen how important this step is with the recent product
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launch of CD Project’s Cyberpunk 2077. Since it ensures that the platform can work in

extreme environments, it will enable Bluestacks to launch a powerful product in the

market that would be adapted very fast and widely. Therefore, testing will also bring

industry pioneers, early adopters as well as regular customers on board. The company

should gather feedback from official resources as well as Reddit, Twitter and other

social media channels and timely response and appreciate the feedback of its customers

to increase the engagement.

Product Launch with Omni-channel Marketing

After Bluestacks gather enough feedback from beta testers and future customers,

the relevant departments like marketing and R&D should do a fine-tuning on both

Omnichannel Marketing Strategies and Product Development and release the product

to market. It is essential to promote the Bluestacks Platform heavily on every channel

that Bluestacks audience is present. These are including but not limited to YouTube,

Twitch, TV Ads, Email Marketing, Video Marketing, Social Media Marketing, SEO

and so on. Moreover, partnering with influencers at the early stage of the product

launch is critical as well as providing solid customer support to ensure the seamless

adoption of the product. Also, these channels must be boosted by PR campaigns by the

usage of powerful PR agencies from the industry.

Another major important strategy Bluestacks must follow is to sponsor/host

esports events for the titles that are featured on its platform. This will tremendously

help with brand loyalty, customer retention as well as brand recognition as many of the

gamers today associate themselves with the community of these esports tournaments

and teams. Moreover, it will also help the company building its community.
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References

Cloud Gaming Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report By Type (File Streaming,

Video Streaming), By Device, By Gamer Type, By Region, And Segment

Forecasts, 2021 - 2027(2021). Retrieved from

https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/cloud-gaming-market

Half a Billion Dollars in 2020: The Cloud Gaming Market Evolves as Consumer

Engagement & Spending Soar (2021). Retrieved March 10 , 2021, from

newzoo.com

Steam controls up to 70% of the PC download market and is. (2011, February 14).

Retrieved from https://www.pcgamer.com/steam-controls-up-to-70-of-the-pc-

download-market-and-is-tremendously-profitable/