Rovio Entertainment Explained

Rovio Entertainment Corporation
Trading Name:Rovio
Type:Subsidiary
Native Name:Rovio Entertainment Oyj
Industry:Video games
Founded: in Helsinki, Finland
Hq Location City:Espoo
Hq Location Country:Finland
Num Locations:8 studios
Num Locations Year:2022
Products:Angry Birds series
Revenue: [1]
Revenue Year:2022
Income Year:2022
Net Income Year:2022
Num Employees: 513
Num Employees Year:2022
Parent:Sega (2023–present)
Subsid:Ruby Games

Rovio Entertainment Oyj (formerly Relude Oy and Rovio Mobile Oy) is a Finnish video game developer based in Espoo. Founded in 2003 by Helsinki University of Technology students Niklas Hed, Jarno Väkeväinen and Kim Dikert, the company is best known for the Angry Birds franchise. The company currently operates studios in Barcelona, Toronto, Montreal, Espoo, Stockholm, and Copenhagen.

The company's success has helped to establish Finland as a leading player in the mobile game industry and has helped to create a thriving ecosystem for game development in the country.[2]

Sega bought Rovio for in August 2023, and has been made a subsidiary of the Sega Europe division.[3] [4]

History

2003–2009: early years

In 2003, three students from the Helsinki University of Technology, Niklas Hed, Jarno Väkeväinen and Kim Dikert, participated in a mobile game development competition at the Assembly demo party sponsored by Nokia and Hewlett-Packard. A victory with a mobile game called King of the Cabbage World led the trio to set up their own company, Relude. King of the Cabbage World was sold to Sumea, and renamed to Mole War, which became one of the first commercial real-time multiplayer mobile games. In January 2005, Relude received its first round of investment from a business angel, and the company changed its name to Rovio Mobile, where "rovio" translates from Finnish as "pyre".[5]

In 2009, the board gave Mikael Hed the job of CEO. In December 2009, Rovio released Angry Birds, its 52nd game, a puzzle game where a bird is flung at pigs using a slingshot for the iPhone; it reached No. 1 spot in the Apple App Store paid apps chart after six months, and remained charted for months after.[5]

2010–2014: international success

In March 2011, Rovio raised $42 million in venture capital funding from Accel Partners, Atomico and Felicis Ventures.[6] In July 2011, the company changed its name to Rovio Entertainment.[7] [8] In June 2011, the company hired David Maisel to lead their Angry Birds movie production.[9] By October 2011, Rovio purchased Kombo, a Helsinki-based animation company.[10] The animation studio was acquired to produce a series of short videos released in 2012.[11] In March 2012, Rovio acquired Futuremark Game Studios, the game development division of benchmarking company Futuremark, for an undisclosed sum.[12]

In May 2012, Rovio announced that its game series Angry Birds had reached its one billionth download. In July 2012, Rovio announced a distribution partnership with Activision to bring the first three Angry Birds titles to video game consoles and handhelds, in a collection named Angry Birds Trilogy. It was released in September 2012. In November 2012, Rovio released Angry Birds Star Wars, an iteration of its popular game licensed from the Star Wars original trilogy, for mobile devices and PC. Rovio partnered with Activision again to port the title to video game consoles and handhelds, with it being released on those platforms in October 2013. A sequel, Angry Birds Star Wars II, based on the Star Wars prequel trilogy, was released in September 2013.

In March 2013, Rovio launched its multi-platform Toons.TV channel starting with Angry Birds Toons.[13] As of 2013, Rovio became a video game publisher and is publishing third party games through its Rovio Stars program.[14] The channel was discontinued in 2017.

In January 2014, Rovio announced that its game series Angry Birds had reached its two billionth download.[15] In addition, it was revealed that their flagship series, Angry Birds, "leaked data" to third-party companies, possibly to surveillance agencies like the NSA.[16] In retaliation, anti-NSA hackers defaced Rovio's website.[17]

In May 2014, Rovio launched a new publishing arm, Rovio LVL11, to release experimental games.[18] The first game published under Rovio LVL11 is Retry[19] and the second is Selfie Slam.[20] As of June 2014, Rovio considers themselves an entertainment company, not just a game company. This is reinforced by Rovio's merchandise and licensing business accounting for about half of their annual revenue of $216 million in 2013.[21]

2014–present: decline and acquisition by Sega

In August 2014, Rovio announced that Mikael Hed would step down as CEO in January 2015 in favour of Pekka Rantala.[22] Hed remained on Rovio's board and became the chairman of Rovio Animation. In December 2014, Rovio laid off 110 employees after net profits halved in 2013 due to its recent games, Angry Birds Epic and Go!, which have not been that successful as past games.[23] After this move, Rovio closed its Tampere studio, moving their operations to its Espoo location. At the end of 2014, Rovio suffered from a 73% decrease in profit, earning only €10 million. Pekka Rantala stated that the decrease is due to the poor sales of the licensed merchandise and the by-products of Angry Birds. He also noted that "the company are unsatisfied over the result of our licensing business".[24] In August 2015, Rovio laid off 260 employees worldwide after Angry Birds toy and merchandise revenue fell by 43% during 2014.[25] In December 2015, Rantala announced that he would step down as the CEO and would be succeeded by Kati Levoranta, former chief legal officer of Rovio, in January 2016.[26]

On 16 January 2017, Rovio opened its new game studio in London to focus on massively multiplayer online games.[27] On 15 February, Rovio announced that it will be cutting at least 35 jobs as it restructures the animation division.[28] In March, Kaiken Entertainment, founded by former Rovio CEO Mikael Hed, acquired Rovio's animation division.[29] Later that month Rovio reported that it has returned to profitability with a gross revenue of US$201 million with the success of the Angry Birds Movie and its recent video games.[30] In June, Kaj Hed resigned as chairman of Rovio and Mika Ihamuotila succeeded him as new chairman.[31] On 5 September, Rovio announced its intention to become a publicly-traded company.[32] In October, Rovio shares were sold at NASDAQ Helsinki[33] and the company was valued at $1 billion.[34]

On 2 March 2018, Rovio announced the closure of its London studio after disappointing results.[35] Later on 14 November, Rovio announced that it appointed the former Gameloft executive Alexandre Pelletier-Normand as executive vice president of its game business unit. He started his role on January 2, 2019.[36] On 30 November 2018, Rovio announced that they had fully acquired PlayRaven, the developer known for making strategy games such as Eve: War of Ascension.[37]

On 3 June 2020, Rovio acquired Darkfire Games for an undisclosed sum. The subsidiary became Rovio Copenhagen.[38] On 21 December Rovio announced that Executive Vice President of games, Alexandre Pelletier-Normand, would take over as CEO. The change went into effect on January 1, 2021.[39] In 2021, the New Mexico attorney general filed a federal lawsuit against Rovio, alleging the company illegally collected and sold private personal data of users under thirteen to third party advertisers.[40]

On 15 April 2023, IGN reported that Sega would be acquiring Rovio, with a deal close to $1 billion. Rovio had rejected an earlier acquisition bid from Israeli mobile company Playtika for $800 million.[41] Two days later Sega Sammy Holdings announced that they have made a €706 million ($776 million USD) tender offer to bid for Rovio, which closed on 17 August. On December 7, Rovio closed down the Montreal based division Studio Lumi leading to the loss of 16 jobs.[42] [43]

Games developed

Pre-Angry Birds

Prior to creating Angry Birds, Rovio developed 51 games, a combination of work-for-hire projects, publishing contracts and independently released titles.[44]

2009–present

Yearwidth=200px rowspan="2" TitlePlatform(s)
AndroidiOSPCWP
2009Angry Birds
2010Angry Birds Seasons
2011Angry Birds Rio
2012Angry Birds Space
Amazing Alex
Bad Piggies
Angry Birds Star Wars
2013The Croods
Angry Birds Friends
Angry Birds Star Wars II
Angry Birds Go!
2014Angry Birds Epic
Angry Birds Stella
Angry Birds Transformers
Selfie Slam
Retry
2015Angry Birds POP!
Angry Birds 2
Nibblers
Love Rocks Starring Shakira
Angry Birds Fight!
2016Angry Birds Action!
Angry Birds Blast!
2017Battle Bay
Angry Birds Evolution
Angry Birds Match
Angry Birds Champions
Angry Birds for Messenger
2019Angry Birds Dream Blast
Angry Birds VR/AR: Isle of Pigs
Angry Birds POP Blast
Angry Birds Explore
The Angry Birds Movie 2 VR: Under Pressure
Sugar Blast
2020Small Town Murders
2021Angry Birds Reloaded
2021Angry Birds: Bird Island
2022Angry Birds Journey
Rovio Classics: Angry Birds
2023Angry Birds Kingdom
Bad Piggies 2
2024Sonic Rumble[45]

Television series

Feature films

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Annual report 2022 . 16 February 2023 . 10 February 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230210001641/https://investors.rovio.com/sites/rovio-ir-v2/files/2023-02/Rovio%20Q4-2022_interim%20report.pdf . live .
  2. Web site: 2022-05-30 . How Finland Became a Major Player in the Global Gaming Industry? The Enterprise World . 2023-01-30 . en-US . 30 January 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230130181700/https://theenterpriseworld.com/how-finland-became-a-major-player/ . live .
  3. Web site: Reid . Jenni . 2023-04-17 . Sega to acquire Angry Birds maker Rovio for $776 million . 2023-04-17 . CNBC . en.
  4. Web site: Sega has completed its acquisition of Rovio . Chris . Scullion . August 18, 2023 . August 18, 2023 . .
  5. Web site: In the land of Angry Birds: Rovio reveals its global entertainment ambitions (photo gallery) . 24 November 2013 . venturebeat.com . 19 July 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180719143357/https://venturebeat.com/2013/11/24/in-the-land-of-angry-birds-my-trip-to-rovios-headquarters-photo-gallery/view-all/ . 19 July 2018 . live . dmy-all .
  6. Web site: Angry Birds dev raises $42 million . Tor . Thorsen . 11 March 2011 . gamespot.com . 19 July 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180719143318/https://www.gamespot.com/articles/angry-birds-dev-raises-42-million/1100-6303510/ . 19 July 2018 . live . dmy-all .
  7. News: 'Angry Birds' Spreads Wings . Nick . Wingfield . Wall Street Journal . 10 August 2011 . 19 July 2018 . www.wsj.com . https://web.archive.org/web/20180719173426/https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424053111904480904576498460747826834 . 19 July 2018 . live . dmy-all .
  8. Web site: After 3 Years Of Angry Birds, What's Next For Rovio?. Robin. Wauters. 21 December 2012. The Next Web. 2 September 2019. 26 October 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201026075407/https://thenextweb.com/insider/2012/12/21/inside-the-nest-how-angry-birds-catapulted-rovio-to-the-stars-and-what-happens-next/. live.
  9. Web site: Angry Birds hires movie producer for 'future films' – BBC Newsbeat . 7 May 2011 . bbc.co.uk . 19 July 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180826150141/http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/article/14019732/angry-birds-hires-movie-producer-for-future-films . 26 August 2018 . live . dmy-all .
  10. Web site: Rovio Acquires Finnish Animation Studio Kombo For Cash and Stock . adweek.com . June 2011 . 19 July 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180719174847/https://www.adweek.com/digital/rovio-acquires-finnish-animation-studio-kombo-for-cash-and-stock/ . 19 July 2018 . live . dmy-all .
  11. Web site: Angry Birds confirm work on a film version is underway – BBC Newsbeat . Dan . Whitworth . 20 October 2011 . bbc.co.uk . 19 July 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180826150139/http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/article/15385699/angry-birds-confirm-work-on-a-film-version-is-underway . 26 August 2018 . live . dmy-all .
  12. Web site: 'Angry Birds' creator Rovio acquires Futuremark Games Studio . theverge.com . 27 March 2012 . 19 July 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180719143246/https://www.theverge.com/2012/3/27/2905608/rovio-futuremark-games-studio-acquisition . 19 July 2018 . live . dmy-all .
  13. Web site: Rovio Announces Second Season of 'Angry Birds Toons' Series . hollywoodreporter.com . 25 September 2013 . 19 July 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180719143046/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/rovio-announces-second-season-angry-636435 . 19 July 2018 . live . dmy-all .
  14. Web site: Angry Birds Maker Rovio Will Now Publish And Market Select Third-Party Games . techcrunch.com . 14 May 2013 . 19 July 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180719143025/https://techcrunch.com/2013/05/14/angry-birds-maker-rovio-will-now-publish-and-market-select-third-party-games/ . 19 July 2018 . live . dmy-all .
  15. Web site: Angry Birds series pecks up 2 billion downloads . engadget.com . 22 January 2014 . 19 July 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180719143103/https://www.engadget.com/2014/01/22/angry-birds-series-pecks-up-2-billion-downloads/ . 19 July 2018 . live . dmy-all .
  16. Web site: Angry Birds and 'leaky' phone apps targeted by NSA and GCHQ for user data . James . Ball . 28 January 2014 . the Guardian . 19 July 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140302173109/http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jan/27/nsa-gchq-smartphone-app-angry-birds-personal-data . 2 March 2014 . live . dmy-all .
  17. News: Hackers deface Angry Birds website . BBC News . 19 July 2018 . 19 July 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180826150137/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-25949341 . 26 August 2018 . live . dmy-all .
  18. Web site: Rovio's new publishing arm LVL11 is a 'magical place' for experimental games . polygon.com . 7 May 2014 . 19 July 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180719143345/https://www.polygon.com/2014/5/7/5691382/rovios-lvl11-publishing-experimental-games . 19 July 2018 . live . dmy-all .
  19. Web site: Angry Birds developers reveal Flappy Bird-inspired mobile game Retry . polygon.com . 7 May 2014 . 19 July 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180719143332/https://www.polygon.com/2014/5/7/5690134/angry-birds-flappy-birds-retry-mobile-ios-rovio . 19 July 2018 . live . dmy-all .
  20. Web site: Selfie Slam is a collection of silly mini-games from Rovio that's in soft launch for iPad and iPhone . pocketgamer.co.uk . 16 September 2014 . 19 July 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180719173524/http://www.pocketgamer.co.uk/r/iPad/Selfie+Slam/news.asp?c=61536 . 19 July 2018 . live . dmy-all .
  21. Web site: Mighty Eagle: Angry Birds Maker Not a Games Company . Juhana . Rossi . 18 June 2014 . wsj.com . 19 July 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180616035151/https://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2014/06/18/irate-mighty-eagle-says-angry-birds-maker-is-not-a-games-company/ . 16 June 2018 . live . dmy-all .
  22. Web site: Struggling Angry Birds maker dumping CEO . Chris . Isidore . cnn.com . 29 August 2014 . 19 July 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180719143405/https://money.cnn.com/2014/08/29/technology/angry-birds-ceo/ . 19 July 2018 . live . dmy-all .
  23. Web site: Angry Birds maker Rovio reduces layoffs to 110 and will close a studio . 4 December 2014 . venturebeat.com . 19 July 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180719143343/https://venturebeat.com/2014/12/04/angry-birds-maker-rovio-reduces-layoffs-to-110-and-will-close-a-studio/ . 19 July 2018 . live . dmy-all .
  24. Web site: Angry Birds dev profits falling off sharply – but not for the reason you think – VG247 . 19 March 2015 . vg247.com . 19 July 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180719145546/https://www.vg247.com/2015/03/19/angry-birds-dev-profits-falling-off-sharply-but-not-for-the-reason-you-think/ . 19 July 2018 . live . dmy-all .
  25. Web site: Angry Birds developer Rovio to lay off 260 staff . eurogamer.net . 26 August 2015 . 19 July 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180719143110/https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2015-08-26-angry-birds-developer-rovio-to-lay-off-260-staff . 19 July 2018 . live . dmy-all .
  26. Web site: Rovio's CEO steps down after just over a year on the job . theverge.com . 9 December 2015 . 19 July 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180719113654/https://www.theverge.com/2015/12/9/9878424/rovio-angry-birds-ceo-replaced . 19 July 2018 . live . dmy-all .
  27. News: 16 January 2017 . Angry Birds maker Rovio opens new games studio in London . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20180719143310/https://www.reuters.com/article/rovio-games-idUSL5N1F40AQ . 19 July 2018 . 19 July 2018 . reuters.com . dmy-all.
  28. News: 'Angry Birds' Owner Rovio to Cut Jobs . Matthias . Verbergt . Wall Street Journal . 15 February 2017 . 19 July 2018 . www.wsj.com . https://web.archive.org/web/20180719173401/https://www.wsj.com/articles/angry-birds-owner-rovio-to-cut-jobs-1487153622 . 19 July 2018 . live . dmy-all .
  29. Web site: Rovio Founder Launches Kaiken Entertainment, Takes Over Rovio's TV Animation, Publishing. Carita. Rizzo. 7 March 2017. 19 July 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180719143413/https://variety.com/2017/digital/news/rovio-mikael-hed-angry-birds-kaiken-1202003088/. 19 July 2018. live. dmy-all.
  30. News: Angry Birds-dependent games maker Rovio swings to annual profit . Jussi . Rosendahl . reuters.com . 28 February 2017 . 19 July 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180719143308/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-rovio-results/angry-birds-dependent-games-maker-rovio-swings-to-annual-profit-idUSKBN1672JM . 19 July 2018 . live . dmy-all .
  31. Web site: Rovio's Board of Directors appoints Mika Ihamuotila as new Chairman of the Board . pocketgamer.biz . 2 June 2017 . 19 July 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180719143320/https://www.pocketgamer.biz/job-news/65888/rovio-appoints-mika-ihamuotila-chairman-of-the-board/ . 19 July 2018 . live . dmy-all .
  32. Web site: Angry Birds maker Rovio announces plans for IPO to raise $36 million . 5 September 2017 . venturebeat.com . 19 July 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180719143240/https://venturebeat.com/2017/09/05/angry-birds-maker-rovio-announces-plans-for-ipo-to-raise-36-million/ . 19 July 2018 . live . dmy-all .
  33. Web site: Rovio confirm plan for IPO on Helsinki NASDAQ . mcvuk.com . 5 September 2017 . 19 July 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180826145759/https://www.mcvuk.com/development/rovio-confirm-plan-for-ipo-on-helsinki-nasdaq . 26 August 2018 . live . dmy-all .
  34. Web site: Angry Birds maker Rovio sets IPO price range that values company around $1 billion . 15 September 2017 . venturebeat.com . 19 July 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180719145017/https://venturebeat.com/2017/09/15/angry-birds-maker-rovio-sets-ipo-price-range-that-values-company-around-1-billion/ . 19 July 2018 . live . dmy-all .
  35. News: Angry Birds maker Rovio shutters London studio as results disappoint . Matthew . Field . The Telegraph . 2 March 2018 . 19 July 2018 . www.telegraph.co.uk . https://web.archive.org/web/20180622184451/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/2018/03/02/angry-birds-maker-rovio-shutters-london-studio-results-disappoint/ . 22 June 2018 . live . dmy-all .
  36. Web site: Ex-Gameloft Exec Joins 'Angry Birds' Developer Rovio Entertainment . Stefanie . Fogel . 14 November 2018 . 15 November 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20181115113352/https://variety.com/2018/gaming/news/ex-gameloft-exec-joins-rovio-entertainment-1203028274/ . 15 November 2018 . live . dmy-all .
  37. News: Angry Birds firm Rovio buys strategy game studio PlayRaven. Reuters. 1 December 2018. www.reuters.com. 13 December 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20181215222613/https://www.reuters.com/article/legal-uk-playraven-m-a-rovio-idUSKCN1O02VV. 15 December 2018. live. dmy-all. Rosendahl. Anne Kauranen.
  38. Rovio Entertainment has acquired Darkfire Games – Copenhagen based mobile games studio. 3 June 2020. 20 June 2020. 21 June 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200621175517/http://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2020/06/03/2042670/0/en/Rovio-Entertainment-has-acquired-Darkfire-Games-Copenhagen-based-mobile-games-studio.html. live.
  39. Web site: 2020-12-21. Alexandre Pelletier-Normand appointed as the new CEO. 2021-02-05. Rovio. en-US. 5 March 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210305064559/https://www.rovio.com/articles/alexandre-pelletier-normand-appointed-as-the-new-ceo-of-rovio-entertainment-corporation/. live.
  40. Web site: Gillett. M. Tyler. 28 August 2021. New Mexico sues Angry Birds developer over child privacy violations. live. JURIST. 22 September 2021. 23 September 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210923164606/https://www.jurist.org/news/2021/08/new-mexico-sues-angry-birds-developer-over-child-privacy-violations/.
  41. News: Yang . George . Sega is Reportedly Close to Acquiring Angry Birds Developer Rovio for $1 Billion . 16 April 2023 . IGN . 15 April 2023.
  42. Web site: Writer . Sophie McEvoy Staff . 2023-12-07 . Rovio closes Studio Lumi . 2024-01-20 . GamesIndustry.biz . en.
  43. Web site: Griffiths . Daniel . 2023-12-07 . Rovio close Studio Lumi in Montreal with the loss of 16 jobs . 2024-01-20 . pocketgamer.biz.
  44. Web site: Interview: Rovio on the origin of Angry Birds, being inspired by swine flu, and why you may never see an Angry Birds 2 . Jon . Mundy . 13 October 2010 . . 13 November 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191113163244/https://www.pocketgamer.com/articles/024243/interview-rovio-on-the-origin-of-angry-birds-being-inspired-by-swine-flu-and-why-you-may-never-see-an-angry-birds-2/ . 13 November 2019 . live.
  45. Web site: Rovio's involvement in Sonic Rumble. X. Rovio. May 8, 2024. May 8, 2024.

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