There are all sorts of business models that work for cell phone games. Here are the three most common: * Freemium - Get users then try to charge them money la

There are all sorts of business models that work for cell phone games. Here are the three most common: * Freemium - Get users then try to charge them money later * Up front - Get paid by people, then provide them with a game * Ad-based - Get users and then sell their attention to companies The reason why freemium is so popular is that it makes sales much easier. Users can try a game with zero risk of spending money on something they don't like. For this reason users are more likely to download your game instead of a paid app. Once they get hooked, they are more likely to spend money. I would argue this is a good thing for users and for publishers. Users have reduced risk and publishers can get in front of more potential customers. Fremium doesn't have to be pay-to-win or scammy. Depending upon your game, you can sell access to more levels, better AI, multiplayer support, new graphic tiles or other items that provide real value without being scammy. The original Doom worked like this... The first levels were free, but if you wanted to play the entire game, you had to pay up. The fact that the first part was free allowed it to spread like a virus and boosted its sales immeasurably. Freemium can be applied to almost anything. I wrote a book and give away one chapter. Want the rest? Time to break open that wallet. It doesn't feel scammy at all. Folks can read the free chapter and get a feel for the type of content and quality that the rest of the book contains. Less risk for them, more money for me.