August 17 (SeeNews) - Finnish entertainment company Rovio Entertainment Oy, the creator of the Angry Birds franchise, said it has inked a deal to take over Turkish hyper-casual game studio Ruby Games in a push to boost its audience and market footprint.
The agreed cash-and-stock acquisition will be carried out through various stages, the Finnish firm said in a press release earlier in August.
You can subscribe to our M&A newsletter here
Rovio will first buy a 20% stake in Ruby for $10 million (8.5 million euro) in cash with the transaction expected to close by the end of the third quarter or early in the fourth quarter of 2021. The Finnish company will then pay up to $80 million in cash and stock to take an additional 50% interest in October 2022. The remaining 30% will be acquired in five equal tranches over the next five years at a valuation based on Ruby’s financial performance.
Izmir-based Ruby is the creator of Hunter Assassin, the sixth most downloaded game in the world in 2020. It has so far launched 13 games with its portfolio also including Streamer Life, Doctor Care and Riddle Master. The company, which was founded in 2018, employs 34 people.
The Turkish firm booked $7.8 million in revenue and $3.5 million in adjusted EBITDA in the first six months of 2021. Its total assets were $4.3 million as of end-June. Post close, Ruby will continue to be led by founder and CEO Mert Can Kurum and maintain its headquarters in Turkey.
“This acquisition opens up a new chapter for us, and Rovio’s long history and expertise in free-to-play games will help us to reach higher levels,” Kurum noted in the press release.
($ = 0.8499 euro)