PETALING JAYA, Nov 5 — Making quick money always sounds appealing.
There are many ways to do so, and then there are also game show-styled mobile applications such as Paydro Live or Hq Trivia and Malaysia’s very own Dooit Live, all available for download on Apple’s App Store or Android’s Google Play for free.
Dooit Live is the new kid on the block, but the game has taken Malaysians by storm with an average of 30,000 users per game since its first game on August 20.
“We started off with only 30-odd players and now we’re here,” Dooit chief executive officer Brian Foo told Malay Mail during a phone interview.
The pot prizes start at around RM1,000, and on Malaysia’s 61st Independence Day it blew up to RM6,100.
So if there were 10 winners during that session, each would walk away with RM610.
Amount varies from time to time and each game lasts for about 20 minutes.
Users have 10 seconds each to answer 11 questions, a time-span which does not allow the Google-savvy users to check for answers.
Foo who drew inspiration from similar applications such as Paydro and HQ Trivia, said that the game represents more than just a chance to make money.
“It’s not only a trivia game show. It’s a chance to bring friends and family together through mobile entertainment, and on top of that help people gain useful knowledge.
“In this day and age, when you’re getting so much information from all directions, it’s nice to have a platform for you to stop, think and engage with the information that’s being channeled at you,” he said.
How does it fare compared to other similar applications?
Phillipines’ PayDro launched on April 5 — a sister company to Dooit Live — follows the same format.
11 questions each with a 10-second answer span and weekly prizes of PHP200,000 (RM15,666).
Co-founder Gian Javelona told When In Manila that it has filled up users lunchtime more interestingly and allows them to learn something new on a daily basis.
“We’ve found that Paydro Live has made lunchtime more interesting. Players learn something new aside from just playing for cash. It allows relationships to grow, memories be made, and people to be in the moment together,” she was quoted as saying.
Their game times are at Tuesday, Thursday and Friday at 12.30pm.
Dooit’s game times are on weekdays too, their latest game time moving into the second week of November is at 12pm from Monday’s to Thursday’s with a prize pot of RM2000, while additional night slots are available on Tuesday and Thursday at 9.30pm with the same amount.
Friday’s 12pm session has RM5,000 up for grabs.
Foo however said he’s yet to identify Dooit’s prime time.
“We do not have weekend games now, but we’ve yet to really identify when our peak hours are.
“We’ve been incredibly blessed with amazing response for every game.”
HQ Trivia meanwhile has as many as two million users from United States while the United Kingdom version has 200,000 active users.
All has a similar platform, with a host — usually a celebrity or social media influencer — asking users the questions.
HQ Trivia’s timings are at 3pm and 9pm daily (UK timing) and asks 12 questions instead of Dooit’s 11.
UK’s prize pot ranges from £500 to £300,000 (RM2,708 to RM1.624million) while the United States version has seen prize pools of up to US$250,000 (RM1.04milion).
China has a similar application too called Millions Winner.
The application backed by internet security company Qihoo 360, offers winnings of up to 3 million yuan (RM1.81million) per game with the same time allocation and questions as Dooit.
Money-making or a false hope?
Yes, whether it’s a small amount or a big amount, if you have enough general knowledge you could stand a chance to walk away with anything from RM1 to RM300.
The writer tried his luck at today’s 12pm game slot and walked away with RM0.90, answering all 11 questions right and splitting the pot with about 20,000 users.
“During our earlier days, a contestant walked away with RM2,000. We rarely have a session where users walk away with below RM1, but today was a bit different,” Foo said.
So whichever way you look at it, money is almost guaranteed — providing you answer the 11 questions right.
Users can cash out after they have collected RM50 and pay-out usually takes about two weeks.
This entices users to play it again.
If you fall short on a question, fear not, Dooit’s get-out-of-jail card, PUSO, can be used once per game.
It allows users to continue to the next question with eyes on the prize.
Sustainability
Where exactly does the money come from?
With thousands of Ringgits involved in each session Foo said he will talk about it in the near future but promised application users that there are more exciting things in store come 2019.
A report from recode earlier today revealed that HQ Trivia’s popularity is on a demise, stating that their viral ride is over.
At its peak — mid 2018 — the game was attracting interest form Nike, celebrity guest hosts Jimmy Kimmel and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.
Dooit has also acquired a few celebrities to play host such as its guest host YouTuber Sean Lee Jia Ern and Asia’s Next Top Model runner-up Monika Santa Maria.
Besides that, the application has also attracted the likes of frozen yoghurt company llaollao and Damansara’s Beard Brothers’ BBQ who offered cash prizes and free yoghurts
Though much about its business model and sustainability is yet to be openly discussed by Foo, making money is almost a certainty.
Who knows you might walk away with RM8, an adequate amount to cover your lunch deficits.
