Report: Pokemon Go still #1 App Store earner despite 79% drop in paying players

Last Friday market analysis firm Slice Intelligence reported that the number of Pokemon Go players who are making in-game purchases has declined roughly 79 percent since peaking on July 15th, roughly a week after it launched in North America and became a pop culture phenomenon. 

What's notable about that reported drop (charts embedded below) is how little it seems to have affected the game's earnings; Slice goes on to acknowledge that the game is still generating more revenue than any other iOS game, and Gamasutra verified that as of today Pokemon Go is still the #1 top-grossing app in the U.S. App Store.

While it's possible that Slice's data (gathered using propreitary technology which analyzes online spending based on emailed receipts) may not paint a complete picture of Pokemon Go's playerbase, it's also very likely that the game had so many players at its peak that it can afford to lose nearly 80 percent of payers and still generate significant revenue.

Less than a month ago another analytics firm reported that the game had lost millions of players since it hit its peak in July -- but many milllions more were still playing. It may gain even more if it ever launches in China, which reportedly has more mobile game players than the U.S. has citizens.