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Rovio Receives $42 Million “Strategic Expansion” Investment
Rovio – the veteran developer responsible for Angry Birds – has secured a $42 million investment to facilitate a “strategic expansion” of the studio and its properties. The capital will be used to increase Rovio’s international arm, ensure its growth in the mobile market, and expand to social media and other entertainment venues.
The investment has been provided by Accel Partners and Atomico Ventures. The former is known for backing innovative service providers such as Facebook, Groupon, and AdMob. The latter was created by Niklas Zennstrom, co-founder of Skype, who will join Rovio’s board as part of the transaction.
“This investment will give Rovio wings,” said Niklas Zennström, CEO and Founder of Atomico. “The company has an outstanding management team and is a category winner with huge potential, making it precisely the kind of company we like to back. Angry Birds is one of the fastest-growing online products I’ve seen, growing even faster than Skype, and the company has done a brilliant job of extending it across different platforms and merchandise. I’m really looking forward to joining the board, and helping the team to fulfill its ambitions.”
“With Angry Birds, we have successfully launched not only a strong new brand, but also a whole new entertainment franchise,” said Mikael Hed, CEO and co-founder of Rovio. “Angry Birds will continue to grow, and we aim to create more similar success stories. We will strengthen the position of Rovio and continue building our franchises in gaming, merchandising and broadcast media.”
Angry Birds has garnered over 40 million monthly users, and 2 million plush toys have been scooped up since they hit the market in December. The numbers seem to prove that consumer demand for continued franchise growth is strong, as is Rovio’s ambitious plans for the future.
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