We slingshot this episode and talk about… Angry Birds!? Yes, the early 2010’s mainstream mobile phenomena is now a SEGA brand. On this episode we talk about our feelings about the buyout, mobile games and the weird history of Rovio Entertainment!
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As we previously reported, SEGA’s parent company Sega Sammy Holdings Inc. (SSHD) entered into an agreement to acquire Rovio, and SEGA Europe has since made a voluntary recommended cash offer to the shareholders of Rovio to tender all their shares and the option holders of Rovio to tender all their options in Rovio to SEGA Sammy Holdings. Basically, SEGA will be acquiring Rovio.
Back again with a Rovio update! As of this morning, SEGA has officially acquired Angry Birds developer Rovio for $776 million. The deal will be for the all of Rovio’s outstanding shares and options, valuing them at 9.25 euro per share, a 19% premium to their closing price before the announcement.
As reported by the Wall Street Journal and confirmed a day later by Rovio themselves, SEGA’s parent company Sega Sammy Holdings Inc. is in talks to acquire the Finnish mobile game company Rovio for a staggering 1 billion dollars. Rovio gained worldwide fame with its smash hit franchise Angry Birds which took mobile gaming by storm at the dawn of the App Store and has since expanded into a multimedia franchise.
The acquisition could mark a strategic move for SEGA, as the company could tap into Rovio’s expertise in developing addictive and globally popular mobile games. The acquisition also grants SEGA access to Rovio’s vast user base and provides an opportunity to cross over SEGA owned franchises like Sonic the Hedgehog. Interestingly, Sonic and Angry Birds crossed paths in a Sonic Dash event in 2015.
We will likely learn more about the deal this week, and in the meantime we can only imagine what a Sonic Angry Birds game will play like…