PGC Nordics speakers push mobile studios toward efficiency over IP, AI and live-ops volume

At PGC Nordics (Helsinki, October 20-21), four speakers converged on one theme: discipline beats volume. Katharina Schmidt (ex-Rovio, now at Stash) urged locking IP collab terms before signing: duration, territory, in-game representation. Dr Luke Dicken (Take-Two's former head of AI) told studios to target high-value AI use cases, not every new tool. Outfit7's Urška Leskovar challenged the instinct to add more live-ops events when engagement drops. Xsolla's Ola Dokun added that a webshop alone is not a full D2C strategy without built-in flexibility.

Efficiency over volume replaces growth-at-all-costs defaults
At PGC Nordics (Helsinki, October 20-21), four speakers converged on one operational principle.
Across IP deals, AI tools and live-ops content, speakers rejected the default move: adding more.
Their shared target: resource allocation guided by measured impact.

Locking IP terms before scale
Katharina Schmidt, formerly of Rovio's Angry Birds business development team, now advises via Stash.
She says duration, territory and in-game representation must be fixed before a collab is signed.
"Agree on IP usage rights and approvals early. Clarity is key." - Katharina Schmidt, Stash

AI effort aimed at high-value use cases
Dr Luke Dicken, Take-Two's former head of AI, now leads LuDic AI.
He warns against dismissing AI outright or treating one win as proof of total change.
His flagged high-value case: contextual recaps reminding returning players where they left off.
"People that are chasing the productivity conversation are just running on a treadmill." - Dr Luke Dicken, LuDic AI

Live-ops: more content does not equal more value
Urška Leskovar, senior lead product manager at Outfit7, oversees a portfolio of live mobile games.
She challenges the default response to falling engagement: shipping more events and rewards.
Mature games accumulate competing systems, making good content harder for players to find.
"Players don't need more to do. They need a reason to care." - Urška Leskovar, Outfit7

D2C strategy needs flexibility, not just a webshop
Xsolla's Ola Dokun separates owning a webshop from running a full D2C strategy.
She traces the shift to roughly 15 years of platform fee pressure.
Epic's addition of direct purchases to Fortnite accelerated the trend, she said.
"Having a webshop is not the same as having a D2C strategy." - Ola Dokun, Xsolla
What this means
For Investors & VC: Add payment-provider switching costs to diligence on mobile studios' D2C margin projections.
For Service Vendors: Pitch live-ops system consolidation and event-calendar audits to mature mobile portfolios.