‘Sony Mobile interested in cooperating with local game, app developers’

AMMAN — Sony Mobile is interested in cooperating with Jordanian game and app developers, and boosting their skills, according to Izzat Kittaneh, Sony Mobile business director in the Middle East and Africa.

Jordan, which is home to a pool of talent in the field of apps and games development, is witnessing increased usage of smartphones as well as applications, Kittaneh told The Jordan Times on Monday on the sidelines of a press conference to launch the Sony Xperia Z3 series and Sony C3.

“We are ready and willing to support app developers in Jordan and help further boost their skills in this regard, whether via training or providing them with the tools necessary for development,” he said.

Noting that smartphone penetration in Jordan currently exceeds 51 per cent, Kittaneh added that the Jordanian market is one of the most advanced in terms of adoption of new technologies and usage of smartphones.

Mobile penetration in Jordan reached 146 per cent at the end of the first half of 2014 with 10.691 million subscriptions, while Internet penetration stood at 73 per cent by the end of June this year with 5.4 million users, according to official figures.

Describing the competition in the digital games and app development industry as “very competitive”, Kittaneh said Jordanian developers should focus on localisation of apps and games.

“To be able to succeed and compete, developers should focus on what local communities need and develop applications that are relevant to society and address issues they face,” he pointed out.

Sony Mobile, Kittaneh added said, is interested and willing to support developers and promote their apps and digital games through its channels, app stories and websites.

“I encourage app developers to communicate with us via our website and we are ready to offer all possible help and support.”

According to the Jordan Gaming Task Force, around 15 companies in the Kingdom work in the field of digital gaming.

Jordan, which is the largest producer of digital games in the region, contributes about 60 per cent of the games developed in the Middle East.