Last week, users of handsets running under Google's Android operating system received access to one of the nicest mobile games out there, Angry Birds. Previously available in Beta, the title went Gold on Friday, when its maker announced that it would be made available for download for free. Not only did the mobile game reach
1 million downloads on Android during the first day of availability, but it also managed to maintain momentum, and added other two million downloads in less than a week.
“The smash hit from Rovio,
Angry Birds, added Android to their cross-platform strategy on Friday. Peter Vesterbacka, Mighty Eagle of Rovio, confirmed today that the full version of the game has surpassed 3 million downloads on Android in less than a week,” a recent
post on Google Mobile Ads blog reads.
Currently, the popular game is available for
download on four mobile operating systems out there, including Android, iOS, Nokia and Palm (HP webOS).
It appears that the title indeed managed to make a splash all around the world, with a number of more than 7 million paid downloads, and with over 11 million downloads of the “Lite” free version.
However,
the Android version of the game, although is the full flavor, is still available for free, courtesy of included advertising in the game.
According to Rovio, the maker of the game, it plans on offering its users on Android the possibility to purchase the game and enjoy an ad-free version of the title, but this would happen at a later time.
“
Rovio is excited about the partnership with Google's AdMob as we explore new business models that will allow us to maximize reach across mobile platforms,” said Peter Vesterbacka, Mighty Eagle of Rovio.
“The launch of a free, ad-supported version of Angry Birds was a great success with over 2 million downloads on Android in its first weekend.”
According to the aforementioned blog post, in addition to monetization through the AdMob network,
Rovio plans to offer developers the possibility to serve ads within their app for free.
Through this feature, Rovio expects to be able to promote more game features, while also being able to advertise plush toys they came up with for the holiday season.
“We are excited to work with Rovio and help them reach their 100 million download target with this free ad-supported
version. AdMob continues to be committed to working with mobile developers and publishers to help them build sustainable businesses on mobile,” the blog post concludes.
Angry Birds is available for download from Softpedia too, via
this link.
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