Social media giant TikTok has begun pilot testing games for its app with the help of some of the most innovative developers in mobile gaming. 

Mobile games offer an additional revenue stream for TikTok through advertising. TikTok has more than 1 billion monthly active users, making it one of the most popular apps in the world. 

• TikTok has partnered with game developers Voodoo, Nitro Games, Aim Lab, and others.
• The teams have developed a series of “mini-games.”
• Games on the platform allow users to circumvent the App Store and Google Play.
• Successful launches could hinder potential gaming revenue for Google and Apple. 

The mobile games are the result of the major push into the $198.4 billion gaming market TikTok announced in May. At the time, TikTok had begun testing mobile games on its platform for users in Vietnam. However, the app had first started experimenting with games in 2021 in a deal with gaming giant Zynga. 

Zynga launched “Disco Loco 3D,” an HTML5-based game exclusively on TikTok last November. 

Change of Plans 

The tests arrive amid a reorganization strategy by parent company ByteDance. The Beijing-based company is also considering selling a minority stake in Poizon, an online fashion marketplace for sneakers and apparel, according to Bloomberg.

ByteDance is looking to offload a stake in Poizon, which has roughly 100 million monthly active users, as it downsizes business operations — particularly its investment arm and VC team.

The Los Angeles Rams were hit with a fraud lawsuit last week alleging team owner Stan Kroenke and his lawyer “devised” a “devious and deliberate scheme” to make money off fans through the sale of personal seat licenses at SoFo Stadium. 

The complaint was filed on behalf of Dwight Manley, a renowned coin collector and former agent of Dennis Rodman. Manley’s attorney, Christopher L. Pitet, told Front Office Sports that others have contacted his firm over similar issues since Defector first reported on the lawsuit. 

Manley remains on the hook for the PSLs at a total cost of nearly $1 million. 

PSLs are typically used to finance new venues, with the Carolina Panthers believed to be the first major sports franchise to employ the practice. They usually give the customer a right to purchase season tickets, often for the most desirable seats.

‘False Representations’ 

The lawsuit states a Rams employee who sold Manley six PSLs “made false representations and promises” and is accompanied by a handful of text exchanges. 

• Manley alleged the employee told him that he could sell his PSLs on a team marketplace. The Rams’ website states such transactions are “not available at this time.”
• The Rams employee allegedly told Manley could “cancel at any time,” but the agreement states that PSLs purchasers have to continue payments even if they no longer want the licenses.

The Rams, who settled a PSL lawsuit with fans in St. Louis in 2019, declined comment when reached by FOS.

England’s victory over Germany in the UEFA Women’s Euro 2022 final wasn’t the only win at Wembley Stadium on Sunday.

The game was the most-watched women’s soccer match ever in the U.K., attracting a peak audience of 17.4 million on the BBC and 5.9 million streams on digital platforms. The previous record-holder, England’s 2019 World Cup semi-final defeat, was 11.7 million. 

In Germany, 17.9 million viewers tuned in.

But that’s not all. There were 87,192 fans in attendance — the highest ever for any men’s or women’s European national team tournament game.

• With an average of 18,544 fans, it was the best attended tournament in its history. 
• Combined spectatorship reached 574,875, more than doubling the previous record of 240,555 in 2017.

UEFA recently revealed that 54% of the group stages’ viewership was driven by neutral followers.

Money Well Spent

Ahead of Sunday’s game, GlobalData projected that fans would spend $167 million during the match, with $56 million spent in pubs, bars, and restaurants — fans were predicted to consume over 8 million pints of beer or cider ahead of the game. 

Of the overall figure, $112 million was estimated to go toward snacks, drinks, and merchandise for fans watching at home. 

A study published by Ernst & Young in May projected the 16-team tournament would generate $65.6 million in revenue for its nine host cities, nearly quadrupling the revenue generated during the 2017 competition.

A fitness brand with strong associations with the 1980s is in better shape than ever due to the well-timed launch of its streaming service.

Jazzercise brought in $73 million in revenue last year. The franchise-based workout class company was able to leverage its streaming service, launched in September 2019, to pivot during the pandemic. 

• Jazzercise On Demand exploded from 4,000 members to 60,000 from the start of March 2020 to the end of April 2020.
• The $24.99 monthly service has since settled down to 22,000 subscribers.
• Globally, the company has 8,000 franchises, teaching 32,000 classes per week. Teachers are offered equity in their franchises.

Pandemic Recovery

The U.S. gym and health club industry was slammed in 2020, dropping 18.6% in size from $40 billion in 2019 to $33.7 billion. The market has partly recovered, reaching an estimated $36.6 billion this year. 

Around 25% of clubs and gyms closed due to the pandemic. A bill that would have provided around $2 billion in support to those facilities, part of a larger small-business support package, failed to make it through a filibuster by 43 Republican senators.