How Japan’s Line became an unintentional gaming-platform giant (interview)

Line has become a hot mobile messaging platform in Japan, with more than 270 million people who are using its media-rich features as a replacement for text messages. Although Line features only 37 games, it has become the No. 2 publisher of Google Play titles in the world in terms of monthly revenue, according to the August index from market researcher App Annie.

The company is capitalizing on the rabid appetite that Japanese players have for purchasing in-app items in games. But it has also expanded to other territories like Spain, Brazil, and Mexico, where it is having great success. Line has launched a series of internally produced and third-party releases that appeal to casual social gamers. Players can share simple and fun offerings like Line Pokopang and Line Pop with their friends. The popularity — and revenue growth — is driving a possible initial public offering for Line next year with a possible valuation of $10 billion. The service is one of a series of new networks — like Kakao in Korea, We Chat in China, and What’s App in the U.S. — that could make Facebook worry about its prospects for global domination.