TV Networks Are Turning to Live Trivia Apps to Boost Ad Revenue

When HQ Trivia launched in October 2017, not many people gave much thought to the live trivia game app and its quirky host Scott Rogowsky. The fact that the app was created by the duo of Rus Yusupov and Colin Kroll, the co-founders of Vine also didn’t give the app much of a pedigree as a potential trailblazer. However, in the last one year, HQ Trivia has grown into a powerful magnet of the millennial, Gen X, and Gen Y demographics – and it consistently pulls crowds of more than 1 million people to each of its sessions twice every day.

The arrival and success of HQ Trivia has birthed a new industry of live trivia gameshows targeting different niche markets and audiences. HQ Trivia’s model is simple, answer 12 correctly under the 10 seconds time allotment for each question; get a slice of the total prize money shared between all players who make it through the final question.

Other rivals such as That’s Right! is taking an entirely different approach to how live trivia games are played and won. On That’s Right, answering all the questions correctly earns you a part of the prize money; hence, the smartest players make money at the end of the game. Beyond being the smartest player, That’s Right also allows you to make money by being the luckiest player. At the end of each session, all players are entered into a raffle draw where the luckiest ticket earns some money. Sometimes, someone might be lucky to be both the smartest and the luckiest player in a session.

The popularity of live trivia apps is not a passing fad

Trivia game shows such as Who Wants to be a Millionaire and Jeopardy have been around for many years; but trivia didn’t get the attention of young smartphone-wielding demographics until now. The mobile, instant, live nature of apps such as HQ Trivia appeals to an easily-distracted audience that wants instant gratification.

However, critics have been quick to opine that live trivia apps will soon go the way Angry Birds or Pokemon Go – both are mobile apps that amassed a huge following in quick succession and then went on to fade into obscurity. However, fans have been quick to note that the longevity of live trivia game shows is hinged on their habitual nature. Once you start playing live trivia games, you’ll most likely be playing with a community of friends online or offline – the sense of community keeps players committed to the game, if your friend wins today, perhaps you will win tomorrow.

More so, once you win a slice of the prize money; you automatically adopt an inexplicable level of confidence in your ability to win again—and maybe a bigger significant part of the prize money. For other players, money is not even a strong enough motivator; however, the thrill of competing with millions of other players and ending up being one of the handful of players that answered all 12 questions correctly is a thrill in itself.

Advertising dollars migrating to trivia apps

In April, news broke that Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson was a guest host on HQ Trivia as part of promotions for his then new file Rampage. To drive the promotional effort, The Rock gave out the live trivia’s biggest-ever jackpot of $300,000 which ended up being shared among 83 winners at the end of the game –each winner went home with $3,614.46.

In May, HQ Trivia celebrated the NBA Finals by offering $100,000 in the game between the Cavs and the Warriors. The game was themed around basketball and there were also feature questions about the teams’ home cities. TheNextWeb writer, Matthew Hughes observed that the deal highlights HQ Trivia’s growing involvement in sports. In his words, “Sports fans are immensely passionate, and brands are eager to cater to them, as seen by the vast amount of money thrown into half-time advertising.”

Last week, Kevin Hart was on HQ Trivia to promote his new movie, Night School – the most interesting part was that the $100,000 cash prize went to only one winner instead of being shared among multiple winners. In a promotional message, Kevin Hart noted that “$100,000 is no joke: study up, people! Go back to night school, high school, pre-school, beauty school — you never know what types of questions Scott and I are going to throw your way.”

Going forward, it is still somewhat too early to tell if live trivia will survive and go mainstream. In fact, it is hard to say if mobile itself will succeed in displacing TV for advertising dollars. Nonetheless, it is safe to assume that live trivia apps will continue to earn decent promotional ad revenue inasmuch as brands want to market their products and services the demographics that spend most of their time on their smartphones.