Unity, the cross-platform game engine, has become the first third-party ad network in any Chinese Android app store after teaming up with Xiaomi, the world’s fourth largest smartphone maker.

The agreement gives Unity the freedom to publish its games to the Xiaomi app store, while the Chinese electronics company support them in negotiating local licensing terms. Developers can enable Unity ads and port their in-app purchases directly to the Xiaomi app store.

Xiaomi deputy GM Jingyan Liu said: “Unity shares our vision for rapid innovation, and we’re excited to partner to accelerate creation and continue bridging the gap between desire and distribution. Together, we will be that much closer to allowing developers to tap into the full potential of a global app market.”

Unity is a leading development platform in video games for mobile, consoles and PC. 34 per cent of the top 1,000 free mobile games are made with Unity, with 41 per cent of those being in-house. China accounts for more than 25 per cent of the mobile devices activated on Unity every quarter, with Xiaomi devices having the most Unity-made Android game installs.

Andrew Tang, China country manager at Unity Technologies, said: “A large part of ensuring developer success is providing access to the platforms that matter most. By partnering with Xiaomi, we can help Unity developers bring their creative vision to a massive audience and accelerate the progress of quality entertainment worldwide.”