Sega to Purchase ‘Angry Birds’ Maker Rovio for $776 Million

Sega Corp. has agreed to pay about $776 million for Rovio Entertainment, the Finland-based maker of the “Angry Birds” game franchise. The move aims to help Sega establish a presence in mobile gaming while launching Rovio IP in the PC and console markets. The tender offer — equivalent to about $10.15 per share — was issued from Sega’s wholly-owned UK subsidiary Sega Europe Ltd. and parent company Sega Sammy Holdings. Sega, based in Japan, has as part of its mid-term plan earmarked $1.8 billion for expanding its global presence and “exploring new ecosystems” through 2026. Continue reading Sega to Purchase ‘Angry Birds’ Maker Rovio for $776 Million

Facebook Adds Instant Games Titles, Multiplayer Video Chat

Since Facebook introduced Instant Games on its Messenger platform, its library has grown to 70 games, including “Tetris,” Blackstorm Labs’ “EverWing” and, now, Rovio Entertainment’s “Angry Birds.” Facebook is also now allowing users to live stream their sessions; when a user goes live in an Instant Game, it will stream to his Facebook page and stay posted when he goes offline. Facebook is also debuting an integrated video chat for multiplayer games, which will initially debut only with Zynga’s “Words With Friends.” Continue reading Facebook Adds Instant Games Titles, Multiplayer Video Chat

Rovio Said to Be Planning a $2B IPO as Early as Next Month

Finland-based Rovio Entertainment Oy, maker of the “Angry Birds” mobile games and movie, is said to be planning an IPO valued at $2 billion as early as September. “A listing would test investors’ appetite for entertainment software, a group whose shares have declined an average of 18 percent from their offer prices following IPOs this year,” reports Bloomberg, citing social gamer King Digital Entertainment (creator of “Candy Crush”) and South Korean publisher Netmarble Games (maker of “Lineage” and “Stone Age”) as examples. A successful IPO for Rovio could help finance “The Angry Birds Movie 2,” slated for a 2019 release. Continue reading Rovio Said to Be Planning a $2B IPO as Early as Next Month

VB Insight Study Says Video Is Key to App Store Optimization

VB Insight, VentureBeat’s research arm, published a report on “App store optimization — a practitioner’s guide to ASO,” revealing that video plays a significant role throughout the app marketing process. Author of the report, mobile analyst Peggy Anne Salz interviewed 35 ASO professionals, integrated data from a survey of over 500 ASO users, and examined techniques of successful app developers. The report details best practices for app marketing and looks at what’s coming down the pike for ASO. Continue reading VB Insight Study Says Video Is Key to App Store Optimization

Rovio Self-Finances ‘Angry Birds’ Movie to Control Franchise

Finnish company Rovio Entertainment decided four years ago that, rather than license the “Angry Birds” characters to a Hollywood studio, it would finance its own $73 million movie. Since opening on Friday in some territories, Rovio’s gamble has thus far resulted in a $43 million gross. Companies such as Lego A/S and Hasbro turned to studios to finance their films, but Rovio took the same path Marvel did when it made “Iron Man,” with the goal of controlling the franchise over the long term. Continue reading Rovio Self-Finances ‘Angry Birds’ Movie to Control Franchise

Programming across Multiple Platforms: Is HTML5 Changing the Web?

  • HTML5 is quickly becoming the standard online programming technology, with support from the likes of Amazon, Rovio Entertainment, Pandora, Zynga and various online publications. The trend has also been fueled by browser support from competitors Apple, Google, Microsoft and Mozilla.
  • Last week, Adobe announced it would stop development of the rival Flash format for mobile devices.
  • “HTML5 is a major step forward,” says Netscape creator Marc Andreessen. “HTML5 is going to put power back in the hands of creative people,” adds Silicon Valley investor Roger McNamee.
  • “Some 34 percent of the 100 most popular websites used HTML5 in the quarter ended in September, according to binvisions.com, a blog that tracks Web technologies,” reports The Wall Street Journal. “Resume searches by hiring managers looking for HTML5 expertise more than doubled between the first quarter and the third quarter.”
  • “If you want to be delivering a Web experience around multiple devices, you have to be doing it in HTML5,” explains Danny Winokur, Adobe’s general manager for interactive development.
  • The technology is also being used for media-rich ads and games for social network apps. The article suggests this is only the beginning.