Rovio Entertainment, the creator of the Angry Birds video game, has agreed to be sold to the Japanese gaming industry giant behind the character Sonic the Hedgehog. Sega Sammy Holdings will pay the Finnish Rovio Entertainment a sum of €706 million ($821 million).
Rovio has stated that Angry Birds was the first mobile game to reach one billion downloads, and the brand has also produced two Angry Birds movies. However, Rovio has yet to create a successor that replicates its success, making it a potential acquisition target for larger gaming companies.
Last year, the company – which has around 550 employees in its eight game studios around the world – announced that the number of downloads in its game portfolio had reached five billion.
Sega announced that the decision to acquire Rovio was motivated by the need to “strengthen its position” in the global gaming market.
This market is expected to increase to $263.3 billion by 2026, with the share of mobile games expected to rise to 56%.
Sega has announced that it will utilize Rovio’s “distinct know-how in real-time mobile game operation” to help launch its current and new titles in the global mobile game market. It highlighted Rovio’s mobile gaming platform, Beacon, which it says has “20 years of high-level experience in real-time mobile game operation” in the US and Europe.
“Among the rapidly growing global gaming market, the mobile gaming market has particularly high potential, and Sega’s long-term goal is to accelerate its expansion in this area,” said Haruki Satomi, CEO of Sega Sammy Holdings. “I am honored to announce such a transaction with Rovio, the company that owns ‘Angry Birds’, which are popular worldwide and employs many qualified employees who support the leading development and operation of mobile games in the industry.”
Rovio’s revenue increased from 272.3 million euros in 2020 to 317.7 million euros.
At the end of Friday’s trading, Rovio had a market capitalization of $707 million (£571 million).
Sega Sammy Holdings is a Japanese global holding company created by the merger of video game giant Sega and Sammy Corporation in 2004.
Sega has created several video game franchises that have sold millions of copies and is globally known for the character Sonic the Hedgehog, who has also appeared in two movies.
Sammy develops and sells entertainment arcade machines.
Source: BBC.com