Sega has closed its acquisition of Finnish mobile gaming giant Rovio, posting on X (formerly Twitter) earlier today to officially welcome the Angry Birds developer to the family. While there’s still paperwork to be finalised and no official press release for investors as yet, it looks like it’s a done deal with smooth sailing from here on in.
Rovio’s acquisition story began in January, when Israeli game maker Playtika offered to purchase the company for $737.5 million. Several weeks later, it emerged that talks were officially in motion as part of a strategic review – and that while Playitka in particular was singled out, other companies had expressed their interest in bringing the Angry Birds developer on board.
However, March 23 saw Playtika and Rovio end their talks without closing the deal, opening the door for Sega to acquire Rovio for themselves for $775 million.
Since the acquisition was first announced, it has progressed quickly – just five months later, Rovio is officially a part of the Sega family.
Soaring to new heights
The acquisition’s closure opens up fresh opportunities for crossovers between Angry Birds and the numerous franchises under Sega’s purview, such as Sonic the Hedgehog.
More and more game makers who have traditionally had a focus on console and PC are attempting to make inroads on mobile platforms. Sony has invested significantly into its mobile arm, while Microsoft has put mobile at the centre of its ongoing attempts to acquire leading developer Activision Blizzard. As the world’s most profitable and accessible gaming platform, mobile is well positioned to generate massive income.
Rovio is one of the world’s most successful mobile game developers, and Angry Birds was one of mobile gaming’s first breakout hits, leading in part to the Finland earning the title of the spiritual home of mobile gaming. As such, its acquisition offers Sega a significant boost to its mobile gaming aims, while also benefiting from Angry Bird’s cross-platform appeal – outside of mobile games the franchise has seen adaptations for other platforms, TV series’, films, and even theme park attractions. Additionally, it was announced earlier this year that Angry Birds will be moving into classrooms with a series of educational games.
We listed Rovio as one of the top 50 mobile game makers of 2022. We’ll be unveiling our list for 2023 at our event at Gamescom on August 22.
