I don't know what's happening this quarter, but at least previously, Zynga used to put some some 90% of their revenue towards acquiring new customers.
I've heard from a friend in the gambling industry (which is still legal and thriving outside the US), that it's all a market: There are "affiliates", which can provide you with the right kind of cusotmers, with an average lifetime value of (say) $1500 to you (if you keep them engaged over 6 months and don't piss them off). The "affiliate" would get paid half of that in the long run, or $200 one-time-fee.
There are multiple buyers, multiple sellers, and relationships play a big part, so it's not really efficient, but it is not too far off.
I wouldn't be surprised if that's the case for Zynga-esqe customers as well, although I have no one to verify that with. Alternatively, Zynga might be in the business of bringing in the customers themselves. Either way, it costs a lot of money to bring in a customer who spends money. The same order of magnitude, in an efficient market.
I've heard from a friend in the gambling industry (which is still legal and thriving outside the US), that it's all a market: There are "affiliates", which can provide you with the right kind of cusotmers, with an average lifetime value of (say) $1500 to you (if you keep them engaged over 6 months and don't piss them off). The "affiliate" would get paid half of that in the long run, or $200 one-time-fee.
There are multiple buyers, multiple sellers, and relationships play a big part, so it's not really efficient, but it is not too far off.
I wouldn't be surprised if that's the case for Zynga-esqe customers as well, although I have no one to verify that with. Alternatively, Zynga might be in the business of bringing in the customers themselves. Either way, it costs a lot of money to bring in a customer who spends money. The same order of magnitude, in an efficient market.