Angry Birds owner readies £26m expansion drive
Angry Birds creator Rovio has raised $42m (£26m) to fund international expansion plans.
Rovio claimed the investment, co-led by Accel Partners and Atomico Ventures alongside Felicis Ventures, will help pay for new versions of the game on platforms such as social networks and consoles.
Niklas Zennström, co-founder of Joost, Skype and Kazaa, and Atomico Ventures founder, will join the Rovio board as part of the deal.
The announcement comes as reports claim Rovio has earned €50m (£42.8m) through sales of Angry Birds, with 40m actively playing the game each month.
Mikael Hed, co-founder and CEO of Rovio, said, “Angry Birds will continue to grow, and we aim to create similar success stories. We’ll strengthen the position of Rovio and continue building our franchises in gaming, merchandising and broadcast media.”
Rich Wong, partner at Accel Partners, said, “The proliferation of touchscreen smartphones and tablets has lead to a huge growth in demand for mobile entertainment.”
Rovio currently has 50 employees based in Espoo, Finland, and intends to roll out both an online and console-based version of Angry Birds later this year.
This story first appeared on newmediaage.co.uk
