GamesBeat University showcases the best tips and secret tricks of successful games

It’s already been a year! Next month San Francisco will see the return of the gaming industry’s favorite VentureBeat conference GamesBeat 2014. In addition to breaking news and thought leadership sessions from the top executives in the area, we have added a more tactical track to the agenda for this year’s edition. GamesBeat University is the track at GamesBeat 2014 for game industry professionals to learn the recipes for success in a series of short hands-on talks. Executives from the top studios and companies will unveil tips and tricks that can help games developers build successful games and businesses.

While the main track covers high-level, strategic discussions, GamesBeat University presentations are meant to be actionable and useful stories for game developers and entrepreneurs, and will showcase concrete solutions to common challenges.

Topics may cover all aspects of making games successful, including but not limited to:

• Doing good and monetizing at the same time
• Analysis of game mergers and acquisitions
• Partnering with Asian giants — without getting trampled
• Growth beyond China and the U.S.
• Maximizing monetization without going too far
• User acquisition, word of mouth
• Monetization approaches
• Mechanics of charts and app stores rankings
• Internationalization strategies
• Raising funds
• Re-engaging players
• Building a successful franchise

One of our top speakers for this track is Michael Ehrenberg, consultant and former marketing manager at Apple. He will talk about what it takes to get noticed by Apple and how to position your game so it can be considered for being featured in the App Store — a critical step in helping your game stand out among the million-plus apps already in the market. Ehrenberg will offer tips based on his own experiences pitching Apple and later working on the inside.

We will announce shortly the other sessions, which will showcase how top studios keep building great games and successful businesses.

If you are interested in speaking, please submit an application here. We recommend applying early as we book speakers on an ongoing basis. The deadline is Monday, Aug. 25.

Thanks to the following industry leaders for supporting GamesBeat 2014: NativeX as Corporate Partner; Tapjoy and SupersonicAds as Gold Partner; TrialPay, InMobi, and TapSense as Silver Partners; SponsorPay, LifeStreet Media, SGN, and Personagraph as Event Partners; Pwnit and Nudge as Nest Partners.