Kolibri Games Boosts ARPDAU by 12.52% with Pangle's Rewarded Video Ads

Established in 2017 in a student flat, German mobile game studio Kolibri Games quickly expanded to a team of over 100 based in a Berlin office. It earned recognition as one of LinkedIn's Top Startups in 2019, and was acquired by Ubisoft in February 2020. Owing to its player-centric approach and commitment to self-improvement, Kolibri Games has won millions of fans around the world.

The most popular Kolibri Games app is Idle Miner Tycoon, a simulation game in which users aim to become industrial tycoons by building up mining empires. The game has over 100 million lifetime downloads and is rated 4.7/5 on both Google Play and the App Store.

Idle Miner Tycoon already offered highly developed gameplay with eye-catching visuals, and its payment rate and average session length were solid. However, the game's full monetization potential had yet to be unlocked. Seeking to generate more value from their leading game, Kolibri Games came to Pangle for help.

Kolibri Games incorporated Pangle's rewarded video ads into Idle Miner Tycoon, using waterfalling to manage revenue. They also used Pangle's CPM targets tool to ensure that each ad placement met the desired CPM. This allowed Pangle to provide a high fill rate for their premium campaigns at a high CPM. To help Kolibri games generate the most profit possible, Pangle also shared waterfall optimization tips and market insights with Kolibri Games.

The Kolibri Games team was also very experienced in terms of ad placement setups, enabling it to make the most of rewarded video ads.

One ad placement was an "idle cash gain" reward. Upon returning to a virtual mine after time away, the user can choose to watch an ad to double the cash their mine has just earned. With such a large reward guaranteed, many users welcome the ad option.

Another successful implementation of the ad placement was a boost reward. At any point, a user can tap a "Boost!" button at the bottom of the mine screen and watch a video ad to double in-game income for a time. The button can be used multiple times, extending the boost duration each time. This easily accessible, highly visible placement encourages users to take advantage of the rewarded ads more frequently.

As a management strategy game with a meticulously designed in-game currency ecosystem, Idle Miner Tycoon's in-app ads and in-app purchases build on each other. Rewarded video ads benefit users, don't interrupt the gaming experience for paying users, and maximize the value of non-paying users.