two & a half gamers D2C Trends: Apple bringing back fees & Why is that a good thing!
D2C Trends 2026: Steering is still allowed in the US. No fees (for now). But that window is closing. In this episode, we sit down with Chip Thurston from FastSpring to break down:
The current state of D2C in the US
Japan’s 15–20% platform fees
Brazil joining the party
Apple’s 7-day attribution window
Google’s 24-hour window
Why this might actually increase D2C adoption
How to treat web shops like e-commerce brands
Why hybrid monetization is the real play
This isn’t theory.
This is how publishers are thinking about 2026.
🧠 Key Takeaways
The no-fee US window won’t last forever
Japan and Brazil are the blueprint
Platform fees don’t kill D2C — they mature it
Treat web shop CAC like paid UA
Mid-core and social casino win differently
Email + community = long-term margin
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This is no BS gaming podcast 2.5 gamers session. Sharing actionable insights, dropping knowledge from our day-to-day User Acquisition, Game Design, and Ad monetization jobs. We are definitely not discussing the latest industry news, but having so much fun! Let’s not forget this is a 4 a.m. conference discussion vibe, so let's not take it too seriously.
Panelists: Jakub Remiar, Felix Braberg, Matej Lancaric
Special guest: Chip Thurston
https://www.linkedin.com/in/thurstonchip/
Join our slack channel here: https://join.slack.com/t/two-and-half-gamers/shared_invite/zt-2um8eguhf-c~H9idcxM271mnPzdWbipg
Chapters
00:00 – The D2C Jet Fuel Moment
02:30 – The US No-Fee Steering Window
05:00 – Japan’s 15–20% Platform Fees
08:00 – The 24h vs 7-Day Attribution Problem
11:00 – Web Shop as Customer Acquisition Cost
14:00 – Segmenting Payers Smartly
18:00 – Why Hybrid Monetization Wins
22:00 – Mid-Core vs Social Casino D2C
26:00 – When Should You Launch a Web Shop?
30:00 – Brazil & Global Regulation Trends
34:00 – The Future of Direct-to-Consumer
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Matej Lancaric
User Acquisition & Creatives Consultant
https://lancaric.me
Felix Braberg
Ad monetization consultant
https://www.felixbraberg.com
Jakub Remiar
Game design consultant
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakubremiar
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Please share feedback and comments - matej@lancaric.me
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