The Ledger #7: Gamescom week preview

Four platform moves worth tracking before Gamescom week opens.

This Gamescom preview's ledger: Apple's EU fee overhaul lands October 1

Apple revised its EU App Store terms on August 18: a flat 5% Core Technology Commission for apps distributed outside the App Store, and a tiered 26/20/15 commission ladder for apps that stay inside it. That's the third change to the EU fee model this year. What it means for buyers: model both paths against your actual EU revenue mix now, six weeks out from the deadline, rather than waiting for a final clarity that may not come before October.

Xsolla puts a number on web shops: $17B, 15% of mobile IAP

Xsolla's Web Shop Ecosystem announcement on August 12 claims direct-to-consumer web shops now handle around 15% of global mobile in-app purchase revenue, across more than 800 shops and 700 payment methods. Self-reported, yes; it does square with the year's broader retention-over-volume shift, though. What it means for buyers: if a creative brief for a web-shop campaign doesn't yet specify a measurement plan and an off-platform offer players have a reason to take, close that gap before Q4 budgets lock.

Tripledot closes its purchase of Supersonic

Tripledot Studios completed its roughly $40M acquisition of Supersonic from Unity between August 4 and 6, adding a hybrid-casual publishing arm to a portfolio built on solitaire and word games. What it means for buyers: expect a transition period for any live campaigns tied to Supersonic-published titles. Treat the $40M price as a fresh comparable for hybrid-casual publishing deal terms, too.

Unity's best quarter, AppLovin buys into CTV

Unity posted second-quarter revenue of $546.5M, up 24%, with Unity Vector passing a $1B annual run rate two quarters early. AppLovin reported $1.92B in revenue, up 53%, and announced it is acquiring Wurl to move into connected TV advertising. What it means for buyers: Unity is narrowing to one AI model inside mobile gaming while AppLovin widens across formats, which makes the two harder to benchmark against each other directly than they were a year ago. Don't force the comparison.

What we're watching next week

Gamescom 2026 opens August 25 with Opening Night Live; devcom runs August 17 to 18 in Cologne just ahead of it. The Ledger that follows will cover what mobile UA teams actually heard on the show floor.