Playtime is a multi-track event with several parallel sessions for you to join the ones that you're most interested in.
Our team, top developers and industry experts will share best practices for success on Android and Google Play. There will be plenaries both for apps and games, as well as breakout sessions including:
- Presentations & panels.
- Product group Q&As, where you can hear more about some Google products that will help you grow your business and where product managers responsible for building them can answer your questions.
- Business roundtable discussions, where you can get together with a small group of partner attendees to discuss your experiences on various topics.
- 1:1 consultations and app/game reviews with Google experts on various topics. Requests for these are already closed; if your request was approved, we'll be in touch soon with more details.
During all the breaks, you will also be able to experience our latest demos and technologies and network with our team and other guests at the Playground.
9.00am
Registration & breakfast
10.00am
Welcome to Playtime
Purnima Kochikar, Global Director of Apps and Games Business Development, Google Play
10.10am
Keynote
Tian Lim, Vice President of UX and Product Management, Google Play
10.30am
What's new in Android & Google Play?
Chet Haase - Chief Android Advocate, Google
Milena Nicolic - Engineering Director, Google Play
Kobi Glick - Product Manager, Google Play
11.00am
Break
11.30am
Apps plenary + Games breakouts
Apps
Identifying underlying patterns in apps data
Alyssa Perez - Developer Growth Consultant, Google Play
Develop a better understanding of the competitive landscape in the Play app ecosystem. Gain insights from the performance of top apps on Play across key areas of the user funnel as we identify underlying patterns in apps data.
Games
Protecting games and players by fighting abuse and piracy
Dom Elliott - Product Manager, Google Play
Hear how game developers are using Android and Google Play tools to protect their games and their players to mitigate issues like fraud, abuse, and piracy. We'll also share what Google Play is doing to build a trusted and safe games ecosystem.
Games
Product Q&A: Making the most of the Google Play Console
Milena Nicolic - Engineering Director, Google Play
Kobi Glick - Product Manager, Google Play
Google Play Console has a number of features aimed at helping you navigate the Android device space, expand your reach and market your games. In this session the team behind the Console will answer questions and discuss best practices of how to get the most out of it.
Games
Roundtable discussions
Get together with a small group of partner attendees for a 90 minute session where you will share and discuss your experiences on one of these 3 topics:
- Game development on Android
- Pre-launch best practices
- Building & growing in-app purchase teams
12.00pm
Apps plenary + Games breakouts
Apps
Panel: Balancing free and paid experiences for subscription apps
Jeni Miles - Partner Development Manager, Google Play
Hannah Zambrano - Product Manager, Blinkist
Joey Loi - Product Manager, Dropbox
Patricia Martorana - Product Manager, Mobile Growth, New York Times
Alexis Benslimane - Head of Monetisation, Peak
How do freemium apps find the right balance between offering a compelling free experience alongside a subscription paying users love? In this panel, top global subscription apps will lift their lid on how they balance these two sometimes competing strategies.
Games
Engaging players for the long-term
Aaron Hiscox - Partner Development Manager, Google Play
As developers are looking into building relationships with players that lasts years, we share the latest user insights and examples on how can you further improve the experience of gaming. Learn how to build on the positive emotions evoked by gaming and at the same time, respect your players' time, money and attention.
Games
Product Q&A: Building games with Google Cloud
Marcus Demnert - Customer Engineer, Google Cloud for Games
Ebba Kraemer - Business Area Manager (Nordics), Games, Google Cloud
Whether you're an indie developer, working for a AAA publisher, or somewhere in between, Google Cloud Platform has something for you, from game services reliable and flexible enough to support cross-platform gaming at a global scale, to data analytics and machine learning tools help optimize player engagement, segmentation, and monetization. In this session we will answer your question on how Google Cloud can help you create games, connect with players and scale your business.
Games
Roundtable discussions
(Cont.)
12.30pm
Apps plenary + Games breakouts
Apps
Price localization strategies for subscriptions apps
Sam Tolomei - Health & Fitness Apps Business Development Manager, Google Play
Cristina Poindexter - Product Marketing Lead, Headspace
Learn how to think about pricing your subscription and localize it for users across the world.
Games
Testing like a pro: how to run tests in your games more efficiently
Ignacio Monereo - Partner Development Manager, Google Play
Ivan Trancik - CEO, SuperScale
Riku Rakkola - CEO, Traplight
It is hard to prioritize which tests to perform, results might be confusing and actions are often postponed or never implemented. In this session top developers their experience with testing, their methodology, how they prioritize a pipeline of tests and timing. Learn how can you increase the efficacy of tests across different areas, whether it's technical, game mechanics or monetization.
Games
Product Q&A: Unlock your creativity with Google Play Pass
Shazia Makhdumi - Global Head of Partner Development, Google Play Pass
James Kavanagh - Partner Development Manager, Google Play Pass
Learn about Play Pass - our new subscription service offering access to hundreds of apps and games, completely free of ads and in-app purchases. Play Pass provides subscribers with a high-quality, curated collection of titles–with new titles added frequently. For developers, it represents an opportunity to exercise creative freedom as they build new premium experiences, while having the ability to monetize on a recurring basis. In this session you can learn more about Play Pass, and ask questions about integration and design best practices required to participate in this program.
Games
Roundtable discussions
(Cont.)
1.00pm
Lunch
2.00pm
Games plenary + Apps breakouts
Games
Using affinity learnings to better understand your players
Francesco Crovetto - Partner Development Manager, Google Play
Guy Ulmer, Platform Technology Specialist, Plarium
Many developers struggle to fully understand their audience. Affinity analysis can provide extremely valuable insights on existing players' gaming behaviours as well as helping you make informed decisions on which genre and game mechanics to invest in the future.
Apps
Embracing innovation by building privacy friendly apps
Tatiana van Maaren - Product Solutions Specialist, Google Play
Parul Soi - Global lead for SDK Partnerships, Google Play
Bruce Gustafson - CEO, Developer Alliance
Vinayendra Nataraja - Engineering Manager, Product, Lyft
How can you employ tools and strategies to manage privacy risks and maximise users trust? Hear the experience and knowledge by a panel of of experts and developers.
Apps
Product Q&A: Making the most of the Google Play Console
Milena Nicolic - Engineering Director, Google Play
Kobi Glick - Product Manager, Google Play
Google Play Console has a number of features aimed at helping you navigate the Android device space, expand your reach and market your apps. In this session the team behind the Console will answer questions and discuss best practices of how to get the most out of it.
Apps
Roundtable discussions
Get together with a small group of partner attendees for a 90 minute session where you will share ad discuss your experiences on one of these 3 topics:
- What's next for app monetisation?
- Tactics for long term app engagement & retention
- Re-engaging lapsed users
2.30pm
Games plenary + Apps breakouts
Games
Progressive player populations
Adam Carpenter - Head of Business Growth, Growth Consulting, Google Play
Increase your understanding of player populations and how they change over time - from the golden cohort at launch through the highly engaged core in a mature title. Learn how you can assess what good looks like and make better decisions about how to provide value to your players.
Apps
Apps that fit: designing around people’s lives to unlock sustainable growth
Isaac Pinnock - Co-founder & Partner, Made by Many
Micha Nicheva - Product & Service Designer, Made by Many
We will share the highlights from our latest user research in the US, UK and South Korea. We’ll show you how to achieve meaningful engagement by adapting to people’s lives.
Apps
Product Q&A: Firebase - what's new & how it can help you
Luiz Gustavo Martins - Partner Developer Advocate
Firebase helps you quickly develop high-quality apps and grow your business. Discuss the latest features and how it can help your app succeed.
Apps
Roundtable discussions
(Cont.)
3.00pm
Games plenary + Apps breakouts
Games
Leveraging behavioral science to unlock monetisation in emerging markets
Rodolfo Rinaldi - Business Analyst, Google Play
Zuzanna Dzieciątkowska - Insights Manager, Google Play
In this session we will discuss how to approach building pricing & promo strategy for your game in emerging markets. You will learn how to apply behavioural principles to your game's economics, how to test and optimise for your local audience.
Apps
Mindful experimentation - How to optimize your A/B testing roadmap
Vesna Doknic - Partner Development Manager, Google Play
Jean-Loup Yu - VP of Product, Dailymotion
Karin Tsai - Senior Engineering Manager, Duolingo
Bruno Vaz Moço - Product Manager, Monzo
Top partners share how they ensure their efforts are bringing actionable results and avoid the "spaghetti testing" approach - throwing it against the wall and seeing if it sticks.
Apps
Product Q&A: Apps take flight with Flutter
Tim Sneath - Group Product Manager, Flutter & Dart
Get your questions about Flutter answered by the Product team. Learn how it works, why it can help your businesses, how to use it on new and existing applications, and what's on the roadmap.
Apps
Roundtable discussions
(Cont.)
3.30pm
Break
4.00pm
Fireside chat
Shannon Low - Head of Android Apps & Games Business Development, EMEA
Purnima Kochikar - Global Director of Apps and Games Business Development, Google Play
Tian Lim - Vice President of UX and Product Management, Google Play