KAFD conference gathers global gaming experts to spark regional industry growth

AMMAN — The Pocket Gamer Connects Jordan Conference, an international mobile gaming conference held by the King Abdullah II Fund for Development, was launched on Saturday.

Jordan’s hosting of the conference comes in response to recommendations of the 8th Summit of the Electronic Games Industry, which was also held last year by the King Abdullah II Fund for Development, according to event organisers.

On the sidelines of the event, it was announced that the fund would open a window to support local game developers, with grants of up to JD10,000.

“This is done to achieve the fund’s objective to help young people grow their ideas. Developing the minds of creative Jordanian youth and providing them with the opportunities to bring their work into existence is among the fund’s main objectives,” said representatives.

Around 500 developers and start-ups, as well as 80 speakers from around the world, were present at the opening ceremony, according to event organisers.

“This conference is the first of its kind in the Middle East, and we are hoping it will be the gateway to many more in the region,” said Chris James, a member of Steel Media, who mediated the first session.

“This is a sector where it has been proved that during seven months, a 400 per cent growth is possible. We have new apps that achieve 6 million downloads in six months, with the developer’s revenue shares being 85 per cent of the profits,” Naji Robehmed, head of Huawei’s App Gallery said during the session.

Hussam Hammo, who represented event sponsor Tamatem, said that the region’s gaming industry has 4.4 billion users.

“The Gulf and Saudi Arabia are the two highest-paying markets for games in the world. Compared to the population of China, that is eight times more. Surveys show that 25 per cent of the population in Saudi Arabia spend two to four hours playing games daily,” he added.

The sessions were directed at exploring opportunities in the market, learning from international experts about new content in the electronic gaming industry and networking with specialised international companies, according to organisers.