Animoca Brands acquires browser games platform Gamee for $8.16m
Gamee is a social casual gaming platform with over 80 game titles.
Unlisted gaming company Animoca Brands has acquired social gaming platform Gamee in a deal worth more than $8 million.
The company has met a total consideration of $6.53m in ordinary shares plus earn-out payments of $1.63m (to be paid in cash or shares) to assume 100% ownership of the platform, which has over 80 game titles, 13 million registered users and 1.3 million active monthly users primarily via social media apps such as Telegram.
The earn-out will be paid in cash or shares at the discretion of Animoca Brands and based on Gamee’s achievement of pre-determined revenue and net profit milestones.
At the date of acquisition, Gamee had $1.15m in cash balances and no debt on its books.
Extensive library
Gamee provides users with an extensive game library via its web site and mobile apps, served through a single access point.
Having recorded more than 4 billion gameplay sessions to date, the platform allows users to take part in gaming tournaments, share their gaming activity, and compete with friends on different social media including Facebook and Viber.
Gamee also develops games in collaboration with well-known brands including NASA, Guinness World Records, Manchester City Football Club and Cartoon Network.
In 2016, Gamee was selected to help pioneer Facebook Instant Games along with gaming giants Konami, Bandai Namco, King, and Zynga.
HTML skills
The Gamee acquisition gives Animoca Brands access to in-house skills in HTML5 – the latest revision to HyperText Markup Language (HTML) and the standard programming language used to provide web and browser content.
HTML5 addresses the compatibility issues of HTML4, providing expanded functionality across a range of platforms and devices, and eliminating the need for plugins.
It is the preferred choice for running application games on social media platforms including Telegram, Facebook Messenger and Wechat.
It offers the added benefit of launching applications directly and instantly via a web browser without platform fees levied by the likes of Apple or Google and minus the associated download and installation times.
Browser game market
Industry research shows the global browser games market is expected to grow to $38.2 billion by this year and reach $41b by 2023.
Chairman and co-founder Yat Siu said Gamee’s ability to offer browser games independently from third-party platforms would grant Animoca Brands more freedom, flexibility and unrestricted search, particularly in light of its use of blockchain technology.
“We see browser gaming as the key to mass adoption for blockchain gaming [and] Gamee fills a critical gap in our ability to execute, on a massive scale, the goal of delivering true digital ownership to gaming audiences,” he said.
“Gamee’s significant presence on platforms such as Telegram – one of the main communications platforms for the blockchain industry – is particularly important to maximising our reach and influence.”