Transposing freemium business model from casual games to serious games

•SG sector could benefit from business models from the casual game sector.•The freemium business model is considered for its transpositions to SG.•The freemium business model takes into account four components.•Findings from end-users survey (n=237) and SG companies (n=3) are discussed.•Guidelines are indicated for the SG sector in relation to the four components.