1 person app Harpan LLC acquired by Zynga for $42.5m
Zynga acquired 4 Solitaire apps from Harpan LLC for $42.5m in cash. Harpan LLC which specializes in Solitaire apps is a company which has only one employee-Tim Oswald helped by his brother William Oswald. Solitaire is one of the most popular games on the iOS download charts. With this acquisition, Zynga hopes to turnaround its revenues that suffered a $108 million loss last year.
Zynga: The social gaming master
Zynga, a video game developer was founded in 2007 and developed social games that run stand-alone on mobile phone platforms. In 2009 Zynga launched FarmVille which had "10 million daily active users (DAU) within six weeks". Its other hit games were FarmVille 2, Texas HoldEm Poker and ChefVille. Zynga's business model was heavily reliant on Facebook, a relationship that was formally ended in 2013.
Zynga's rise to the top and drastic fall
Zynga started trading on NASDAQ in December 2011 under the ticker ZNGA. It was riding the tide with shares originally priced at $10, and hitting $14.50 in March 2012. However, its fortunes turned overnight with shares hitting $2.09 in 2012.
Zynga's near death experience
For $180 million, Zynga got the hottest mobile app "Draw Something" but the momentum stalled. With an exodus of talent including VP of engineering Neil Roseman, Zynga "stock slid nearly $5 in April, from $13.15 to $8.34". Zynga shares fell 13% by 18 May, the day Facebook shares began trading. Reportedly Farmville 2's launch came too late, couldn't save the company shares from sinking.
Zynga making its way back to the top
After 2 CEO changes, Zynga mobile games have accounted for "80% of Zynga's FY16 bookings." Its key holdings Zynga Poker and Words With Friends hit record quarters which mapped a 20% and 32%, growth respectively. For the first time its mobile bookings bettered gaining $150 million for in Q3 and Q4 and its cash flow "was positive for the first time in three years".
Zynga reviving its lost glory
Zynga, focussing on its mobile game revenue, gained strength through Zynga Poker and Wizard of Oz Slots. It added muscle with strategy game Empires & Allies and CSR Racing 2 which generated $18 million in 6 months. Zynga's "FY16 GAAP sales were $575 million" and it was revealed that during its Q4 period, Zynga made more mobile revenue than its competitor EA Mobile.
