We've recently introduced three new viral features that we feel will make it easier for games to grow on myspace. Here's a rundown of the new goodies for developers...

• Enabled Share on myspace for onsite apps. This is an improved way for apps to share more types of content into the myspace stream.

Stats: Using Share on myspace now accounts for 10-20% of new installs per day for some games.  It has quickly become the second largest source of installs behind invites during our initial testing. There has been a 14x increase in CTR on stream posts using Share over our traditional Activities API.

• Launched a new In-Game Friending API, allowing users to friend each other within a game.

Stats: Some developers have found a 65 - 70% acceptance rate on friend requests sent from within the game. They also found an added benefit of a 16% increase in gift sending.

• Launched a new App Requests API, enabling users to send gifts and/or invites to friends. This is a new user to user gifting and invite channel for apps.

The feedback we've heard from developers was to enhance our viral channels. We believe these new features are a big step forward, and we'll continue to improve and find new ways to grow apps virally on our site.  We've gotten some great initial stats from test partners, which we've included below.

We hope you enjoy the new features, here's more details about each one!

 

SHARE ON MYSPACE

The stream is becoming an increasingly popular and an effective way for apps to acquire new users. We recently launched Sync with Facebook, allowing users to sync their myspace updates, including some app activities, with Facebook.   App activities allow users to share the level they've achieved in a game, boast beating a friend at poker, or show off the new pet they've adopted.

Currently most onsite app developers use our Activities API to post app activities into the myspace Stream.  Now, we'd like to recommend another way for onsite apps to utilize the myspace stream - by using Share on myspace. With Share on myspace, an app has increased flexibility and added benefits.  Apps are able to share more types of content into the stream, like links and photos.  Developers are also able to include an externally hosted image with the stream activity. This means developers can quickly customize and test photos associated with stream content. Currently, our Activities API only allows developers to include a photo that's been uploaded to myspace. Using Share on myspace is a smart and easy alternative for app developers to maximize using the stream. 

Initial Stats: Using Share on myspace now accounts for 10-20% of new installs per day for some games.  It has quickly become the second largest source of installs behind invites during our initial testing.  Companies have seen an increase of 14x the CTR on app activities in the stream using Share on myspace over our current Activities API.

• Check out our wiki documentation for Share on myspace
• More information on Share on myspace
  

 

IN-GAME FRIENDING API

Our new In-Game Friending API gives developers the new ability for users to friend each other within a game.  This feature allows users to make new friends in order to add neighbors, clan members, or players to a game. 

Initial Stats: After a few days of testing, some developers have found a 65 - 70% acceptance rate on friend requests sent from within the game.  Most people accepted friends within several hours, showing that users were looking for more people to play games with right away.  An added benefit of implementing this feature was a 16% increase in gift sending. New friends made within the game sent each other more gifts, leading to increased user satisfaction.

• Check out our wiki documentation for In-Game Friending API

 

 

APP REQUESTS API

We're also excited to bring developers a new ability for apps to send gifts and/or invites to users.  This new viral channel allows users to accept and send gifts and other type of requests to friends. Users are also able to accept and send an invite to play a new game with a gift or request attached to the invite. 

We've found that on myspace user-to-user communication channels are more effective than app-to-user communication.  So, we expect this new channel to drive more re-engagement within games since it's a more personal (1:1) form of communication.  We also expect it to also drive more conversions of users to your games since gifts can accompany an invite to add the game, which is more compelling than a simple invite.  The goal with this new channel is to make apps/games more personalized and engaging, and provide developers the mechanism to get users to perform viral actions. The key is that this communication comes from a friend, creating social influence and a more personalized recommendation to add the app.

Now that we've added this new communication channel, we thought it would be wise to give everyone a breakdown of what app communication channels are available, what they're for, and what the differences are between them all. Hope this is helpful and let us know what metrics you're seeing with this new communications channel.

• Check out our wiki documentation for App Requests API

 

Today we're introducing Sync with Facebook, www.myspace.com/guide/sync, which allows MySpace users, musicians, and celebrities around the world to sync their status updates with their Facebook profile or Page, while also offering them the ability to share content such as game activity, music, videos, links and photos with their friends on Facebook.

Sync with Facebook allows users to keep their friends on Facebook up to date on everything, including: sharing songs, latest photos, fun game apps, and more.

So, when a user adds a game on MySpace, it will now be broadcast to that users' Facebook friends in their Facebook stream.  Users who click on the stream activity within Facebook are taken to the game's profile page on MySpace so that logged in and non-logged in users can see the content.  At launch we are syncing game install activity, but are working to sync more gaming related activities with the Facebook stream.

The opportunities to experience and share this type of entertainment content are endless. This is particularly exciting for artists who can now use this tool as a complement to their MySpace Music presence and share their vast library of content, including full album catalogs, to people who've liked their Facebook Page.

Here are a few screenshots of how the sync functionality will look:

 

And here's an example of what a MySpace game activity will look like on Facebook.  

Syncing with Facebook is easy to set up:

• Click on the settings box in the update module on your Home page
• Check the box next to Facebook or Twitter (or both!)
• Follow the steps prompted to sync your accounts
• Done! Your updates will now automatically sync.

Users continue to have the option to sync to Twitter as well. Once you've synced your Facebook account, simply update your status on MySpace as you normally would (from your Home page, Status and Mood page, or mobile phone). When you update your status on MySpace, it will then be shared with friends on Facebook.

This new sync functionality is part of an ongoing effort to make it simple for people to share their updates beyond MySpace and allow fans and friends to interact with that content across the web.

As always, let us know what you think. 

 

Jen Ruffner

Director of Product, Stream

 

 

We've recently made some changes to our global search product to allow users to discover games more easily. Our current search product is tabbed by content vertical, so users can search for something within Music or Video. We have now added a Games tab to search, so users can more easily find the games they're looking for. We have also included an auto-complete feature that suggests content for users, further making it easy to find the content you want.  We hope that the new Games search contributes to more of our users discovering fun, new games. 

Several months ago we evaluated our internal search product and realized that if we were going to deliver a better search experience, it was necessary to revamp how we implemented search, end to end - creating an extensible platform for ingesting search data (in this case, information about each game), all the way to a brand new, fast, consistent, modern, user experience supporting both .NET and non-.NET platforms.  During the process we even switched from .NET to Java!  Our first step on this long "search in a box" journey is complete, and it's a big milestone for us and for Games. We're looking forward to making even more enhancements to the search experience, improving the visibility and discoverability of great content. 

Note the difference! 

New search experience for ‘mobsters'  

Old search experience for ‘mobsters'

 

 

- Bill Bliss, VP & GM of Search and Recommendations

Over the past few days we have been testing different options for the amount of apps a user can display on their homepage (UHP) and profile.  Due to this testing, some of your apps may be affected and may not show on the UHP or profile for some users.  We are constantly testing different ways to optimize the user experience, and we will continue to test options for limiting and smartly surfacing apps that are displayed on a users' homepage and profile.  

We believe smartly rendering apps that have great UHP and profile surfaces could help us optimize page load time and also reward those apps that are utilizing these surfaces appropriately.  Our goal is to ensure we have the best user experience possible, and we find that users are more engaged with apps if these surfaces look good and add value.  
 
The UHP and profile app surfaces allow users to easily access an app, express their interests, and showcase their store, pet, or avatar to friends. They are a key channel for many apps to acquire new users and re-engage with existing app users.  Some developers find that 60% of new users and 45% of repeat users come from these surfaces!  We've also found that once an app includes dynamic content within the surface, it receives 10-30% more page views as well as increased engagement within the app. Clearly these surfaces are an important source of traffic to apps, so you should be paying attention to them.
 
Over the course of the next several months, we will be reviewing the UHP and profile surfaces of many apps to determine if they are using them appropriately.  Our goal is to reward those apps that are optimizing this prime real estate.  We highly encourage you to refine and work on these surfaces if you haven't already. Or, if you're not taking advantage of them, now's the chance to get started!
 
Here are a few tips for making these UHP and profile surfaces more effective and fun.
 

• Appropriate size. With our new user profile layout, there is a two column format so surfaces should optimize width to fit both formats.  The surface should either auto-resize or optimize for a 280px width and have the image also be able to work in a 480px width column.  The small column on the new user profile layout is 280px in width and the large column is 480px. The height should be 250px.  This sizing should be the same for the UHP surface.
• No hidden content or dead space. You shouldn't make a user scroll to see content in the surface or have lots of unused space.
• Dynamic content. Show relevant content that reflects what is happening in the game. For instance, the level you're on, your avatar, or notifications No more static ads, you should want to add value to your users with these surfaces.
• Fast Page Load. The surfaces should load quickly (suggested time should be less than 2 seconds) and not negatively impact our overall page load time.

 
In the example below, the game Happy Aquarium is showing dynamic content from the game by displaying what level the user is on as well as hunger and cleanliness levels.  In the profile surface, the user can show off what their fish tank looks like to everyone. The surfaces look good and create value, good job Happy Aquarium!  

Example: User homepage module 

Example: User profile module

 

 

Starting this week, users have the option to preview our new user homepage. The new user homepage prominently displays the activity stream and makes sharing and discovering new content easier than ever.

As users log-in to MySpace, there is a prompt to opt-in for an early look at the new homepage. The homepage will be rolled out and formally launched to all users next week. New features include:

• A wider activity stream: The stream now spans the first two columns, featuring shared content and status updates from friends across your network. With this new design, we're placing more of an emphasis on all of our great content by really making it pop from the moment you sign-in.
• My Stuff and Recommendations: The new "My Stuff" module gives you quick access to games, photos, videos and music right from the homepage. Similarly, all recommendations (Games You Should Play, Featured Games, People You May Know, and Recommended Events) have been combined into one simplified "Recommendations" module. The new "My Stuff" module will replace the "My Apps" module that was on the old homepage. We hope with more navigation to games in a clear format with the new user homepage, it will make it easier for users to find the games they love.
• New alerts system and address book importer: The new alerts system collects similar alerts and repositions them in a more visible and persistent location, enabling users to browse and interact with their alerts without ever leaving the UHP. All app requests and notifications will be presented in this module. A new version of the address book importer will help users find and connect with friends more easily.

Check out the new user homepage:

This is the first of a series of changes to the UHP that you'll see in the coming months. We look forward to rolling out products that will further improve the ability to quickly and easily surface content that matches your interests.

To learn more, check out our page with details on how to upgrade and let us know what you think.

Hello pirates, ninjas, and developers... just a quick update on our efforts to limit (throttle) the number of invites a user can send via an app per day. In the original blog post, we communicated the plan was to initially limit invites that can be sent to 100 per day per user per app; and then further reduce the limit down to 40. Those changes have gone into effect (July 14th), and we have been analyzing the results.

We have confirmed this mechanism to be effective in preventing an excessive amount of invites sent by users. And, as a result, the invites conversion percentage has gone up.  We are continuing to optimize this viral channel to maximize the number of invites converted into active app users. This week we set the daily limit for invites to 60 and are measuring the resulting impact. This value was chosen to provide additional headroom for this viral channel. We anticipate this limit value will be set indefinitely, and recommend all app developers to implement the sending of invites considering this limit value.

For more info on invites, check out the Invites Wiki Page.

Today we began testing the location of two new ad units on the App Canvas page (the game play surface). Since the units appear in the gutters of App Canvas pages (the game play surface area), they will not affect the current size of the Canvas page. The goal of these new ad units is to help developers increase awareness and conversions of their game or app without negatively impacting engagement time per game.  We want to encourage the discoverability of new games to our users, and because the test ads appear only to users who have added a game, they are inherently targeted to those users most likely to play games on MySpace.
  
Let us know what you think and if you’re interested in testing out this new ad unit with us, email me jhatcher@myspace-inc.com.  

 

 

We've been getting occassional reports of apps written in 1.0 not showing when they correctly specify a content block for the profile surface.

ex:

<Content type="html" view="profile">
...
</Content>

While we've solved most of the issues, developers are still reporting occassional problems. The sure way to solve this problem is to use the super-secret, undocumented (until now) extension to force recognition of a view. This is done by adding the MySpace-Views feature block to the ModulePrefs section. In this block you can specify the anchor location for your profile view (left or right), as well as initial sizing on all views.

<Module>
  <ModulePrefs title="MySpace specific app settings" 
    <Optional feature="MySpace-Views">
      <Param name="profilesize">300</Param>
      <Param name="profilelocation">right</Param>
      <Param name="canvassize">100,1500</Param>
      <Param name="homesize">250</Param>
    </Optional>
  </ModulePrefs>

...
</Module

When the MySpace-Views feature is found in the gadget and a profilesize and profilelocation are specified, you force the gadget to recognize that it has a profile view.

Valid values for profilelocation: left | right
Valid values for profilesize: width,height | height

We are continuing to add new ways for users to engage with their Apps and Games on MySpace.  Today we have added a shortcut to users’ Apps from the WebIM bar.  All users by default have access to the WebIM bar, and it persistent at the bottom of their screen while logged into MySpace. A small icon for the last three Apps the user has played appears, with an arrow that when clicked on displays all the Apps a user has added. The goal of adding the Apps shortcut is to enable quick access to users’ Apps and Games from wherever they are within MySpace.

We hope this new, persistent engagement channel helps users easily play the Games they love.  We’ll be keeping an eye on engagement levels within Apps to see how it performs, but keep us posted what you think and if your metrics are impacted.

 

 

We wanted to make you aware of some Game and App testing we’re doing in the Stream starting today. We’ve added Games filters so users can sort through the Stream based on the content they want to see. So, users that just want to see posts related to Games can easily sort through the Stream to see those posts. Since most of our Apps are actually Games (‘Games’ is a subset of Apps), we are testing having one filter for both or having separate Games and Apps filters. The goal of these tests is to determine if the filters help with clicks on stream posts. It’s also an easy way for users to find the content they want and discover new games. Let us know what you think and how this effects your conversions.

A quick heads up that we have some planned network maintenance scheduled for tomorrow morning, June 15th.  The maintenance window is from 7:00AM - 10:00AM (PST). We have scheduled it in the morning to minimize disruption.  The impact during this window will be the following:

 

Users will not be able to add new applications (users will still be able to play apps they’ve already added.

Users will not be able to uninstall applications

Users will not be able to change application settings

Users will not be able to connect new accounts to MySpaceID-enabled sites (if an account is connected already it will work fine)

Developers won’t be able to manage their applications

 

Sorry for the inconvenience and thanks for your patience.

 

Hopefully, most of you are taking advantage of our App Notifications feature.  Anecdotally we hear that app notifications contribute to over 20% of traffic for games on MySpace, so if you’re not using this viral channel you’re missing out!  Are your notifications driving as much user engagement  as you had hoped?

 

Check out our new wiki document, App Notifications Best Practices for some tips on making the most of notifications.

 

Some ideas include:

 

Always have the notification add some value for the player in your game.   Reward the user in some way, such as giving out an item for free for responding to the notification. 

 

 

 

 

 

Or, show them something personalized from their progress in the game that would draw the user’s interest and encourage a visit to the game. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Avoid sending generic notifications that have no more value than an advertisement. 

 

Check out the full document here:

 

http://developerwiki.myspace.com/index.php?title=App_Notifications_Best_Practices

 

MySpace has some impressive partners that share our vision to provide tools and resources to help developers build engaging, fun, and profitable integrations with MySpace. Today, we're announcing the Developer Services program that will provide developers with discounts and promotions on services to make it easier to get started building on our platform.

 

From hosting to business software, here are some of the companies offering unique services for developers to check out:

 

• Joyent is providing MySpace developers one year of free hosting and computing resources on the Joyent Cloud. This can help developers focus on creating the next killer app instead of dealing with infrastructure and scalability issues. The MySpace optimized Joyent SmartMachine has been configured to make it fast and easy to develop and deploy your MySpace applications. Details are available at: http://www.joyent.com/myspace.

 

• PlaySpan, a leader in monetization solutions for social games, is offering MySpace game developers an exclusive, limited-time promotion on their services. Developers can increase revenue by implementing PlaySpan's Spare Change micro-payments system, and if you sign up for Spare Change now, you can save 20 percent on transaction fees during your first 3 months. Enter the coupon code: MakeMoney99 to qualify for the special limited-time promotion exclusively for MySpace developers. Sign up here: http://www.sparechangeinc.com/myspace.

 

• ClickandBuy is offering MySpace developers a way to process worldwide international digital payments through a free merchant account to help monetize and create a business from their applications. ClickandBuy's exclusive deal for MySpace developers include no registration fee, no monthly fee and no fixed costs. MySpace developers can self-register and qualify for a ClickandBuy Merchant Account online at http://www.clickandbuy.com/US_en/myspace.html.

 

• Scoreloop is enabling mobile game developers to link their games directly to the MySpace network via the Scoreloop Core Social SDK for both Android and iPhone. This helps your users find other MySpace friends also playing the game, compete and compare highest scores, share game session progress, send player challenges and invite others to play the game. Along with these features, Scoreloop is running a contest where 10 of the best iPhone / Android social game integrations with MySpace support will receive 1 million free ad impressions through the MySpace App. This promotion ends June 30th, and all developers of live games with MySpace integration by this date will be entered into the competition! Get started at: http://www.scoreloop.com/myspace.

 

• Microsoft BizSpark is making it easy for start-ups to get instant access to Microsoft technology and support. Qualified companies will have simplified enrollment into the Microsoft BizSpark Program. Developers should choose MySpace as a Network Partner at signup; http://www.microsoft.com/bizspark.

 

• Social Gold is a leading global virtual goods monetization platform that allows developers to optimize their virtual economy and increase conversion. Starting June 1, 2010, all developers who use Social Gold to process payments on MySpace are eligible for a 20% rebate on transactions processed. Promotion ends August 31, 2010. Get started at http://getsocialgold.com/myspace.

 

These promotions will be posted on our website but we'll be updating the page so be sure to check back often HERE. Also, let us know if your company is interested in extending a discount on your service to MySpace developers. Drop us a note at DeveloperServices@myspace-inc.com.

As a part of our efforts to offer developers public real-time data to enhance their applications, we’ve added song and video plays to our Real-Time Stream. These are based on the Activity Stream spec. The song plays include metadata about the artist and song, including song name and link, duration, artist and artist URL, album and album thumbnail. The video data includes title/description, a thumbnail, link, duration, and author.  Developers could use this new data in the stream to build a real-time trend analysis on all popular songs or videos being played at any given moment. Also, it can also give a pulse of what artists are hot at that second.

Since we launched our Real-Time Stream API, we’ve seen many companies, like Collecta, using it to enhance their site. Our RTS pushes out rich data the moment it has been published, with public and private channels that respect users’ privacy. To view our full privacy policy, visit it here.  

 

Check out the Real-Time Stream Overview to get started pushing the stream to your site.

As I discussed at GDC in March, we are focused on enhancing our social gaming platform and are deeply committed to helping developers of all sizes increase visibility for their games on MySpace. Today, we’re excited to introduce the MySpace Games Lab pilot program, which is dedicated to bringing third party developers into our offices to drive collaboration and facilitate great user experiences.  Partners including TheBroth and Meez were early participants, and now we’re inviting others to join as well. 

Partnering with our developers is key and opening the platform allows MySpace and its users to benefit from the creativity of the developer community.  We’ve also been working with Playdom to incorporate their feedback and refine our product roadmap priorities.

“Working closely with MySpace has allowed us to launch and extend successful titles like Mobsters and Sorority Life,” said John Pleasants, chief executive officer of Playdom. “As we continue to collaborate, MySpace has been receptive to our feedback to update the platform with improved promotional and viral channels. Our symbiotic partnership ensures that our shared users will continue to enjoy unique social gaming experiences.”  

In addition to this news, we also want to share the latest updates from some of our game developer partners.  Zynga continues to recognize the value of the MySpace platform and is extending the popular Mafia Wars title by allowing MySpace users to unlock the Bangkok chapter of the game. As one of the most popular social gaming developers, we’re excited to offer their games to the avid social gamers on MySpace.

“Social gaming is a powerful way for people to connect with each other,” said Vish Makhijani, Senior Vice President of Business Operations at Zynga.  “As we extend our titles to different places on the Web, MySpace provides an audience of social gamers that engage frequently with games and are excited to discover and share those experiences with others.”

Another nod to the growth of social gaming in general, support for Open Social is on the rise.  As you may haveseen, MySpace implemented OpenSocial 1.0 and is eager to educate the developer audience on how to use it. Sean Ryan, the chairman of virtual world service Meez, recently wrote a guest column for Inside Social Games explaining why he believes the Open Social standard is due for big growth this year. He also highlighted recent success in working with MySpace to increase Meez’s user base to almost 500,000 active users after six weeks on MySpace.

Separately, Lalit Sarna, CEO of Oxylabs, who was an early adopter of the OpenSocial standard, has launched five applications on MySpace in the past year. Ranging from fun apps like PhotoBuzz to social games like Mafia Resurrection, each of the apps have monetized well. Just ask Sarna:

“MySpace offers the largest OpenSocial user-base and gamers on the site are really excited to experiment and discover new social games” said Sarna. “The entire OpenSocial community offers a lot of support and MySpace has been a great partner as our company has grown from a small to mid-sized development house.”

We’re also building the right team to spearhead the evolution of MySpace Games. You may have noticed the recent introduction of new leadership to the MySpace team with the addition of Manu Rekhi who is the new General Manager of MySpace Games and Developer Platform.

We’d like to start a conversation to see how MySpace can support your games. Contact our platform team at PartnerRelations@myspace-inc.com.

-Mike