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Apple, Google offering promotional deals in an effort to woo game developers

Apple and Google are offering promotional boosts in an attempt to get quality mobile games for their respective systems first, the Wall Street Journal reports.

Offers include "premium placement" on each app store's home page, according to sources "familiar with the situation." One such example includes Plants vs. Zombies 2: It's About Time, in which Apple received a two-month exclusivity window from Electronic Arts; the game was released for iOS devices in August, while its Google Play launch wasn't until October 2013.

A similar deal is said to have taken place for Cut the Rope 2 by ZeptoLab. Apple reportedly only makes promotional offers for these deals and does not offer money.

According to Kongregate CEO Emily Greer, the push for exclusivity is due to the power of games on specific platforms.

"When people love a game, and it's not available on an alternate platform, they'll change platforms," Greer told the publication. "The level of attachment a person has to a game can exceed almost anything."

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