• by Josh Lovison , December 7, 2007

Content isn't necessarily king -- context counts for a lot.  This is certainly true for Webs.com, which had over a billion page views within 90 days of growth.  The company  did this by placing its casual games into Facebook's app platform.  As the casual game space grows, success isn't just about having a fun and engaging game.  Placement is key.

It's really interesting to look back at the initial growth of "core" gaming when considering the incredible growth of "casual" gaming.  The truth is, they are more similar than they are different.  "Pong" or "Space Invaders" were even simpler than the casual games today.  Where the gaming industry took off in the late '70s to early '80s was with placement, though.  Putting consoles in the home expanded the market beyond the arcades.

In the same vein, placing casual games beyond the "portal," which has classically been the location for them, seems to be a very smart move.  It worked out quite well for Webs.com.  And while Facebook may have been the right move for Webs.com, there's a wide Web out there -- worldwide, in fact.  Finding that niche context for a game -- well, that's a good idea for the many game publishers out there, and a smart thing to keep in mind for the advertisers doing business with them.