Mobile gaming tournament platform Skillz has launched in beta, offering another approach to monetising apps beyond advertising, in-app purchases or paid-for apps.

The Skillz SDK enables developers to host both multiplayer tournaments inside their apps, with both free and paid options available. The latter enables players to compete for cash prizes, by paying an entry free of $0.25 upwards.

“While mobile gaming continues to boom, game developers need innovative, yet complementary how you can monetize their content. 80 per cent of mobile games revenue went to the pinnacle twenty development studios last year,” said Andrew Paradise, CEO and founding father of Skillz. “Tournaments take mobile gaming to a better level by enhancing gameplay, making it more social and fun as players compete against one another. For developers, competitions translate into longer sessions, better user retention and increased revenue.”

The beta is initially being rolled out to Android inside the US, and is launching with ten game studios, including Gnarly Games, Spooky House Studios, and Rocketmind.