With 263 million active users across all platforms at the end of last year, the Angry Birds franchise has helped Rovio double its revenues for 2012.
The company has published its financial results for the year 2012, with total consolidated revenue growing by 101 per cent over the previous year. Due to a huge growth in games revenue and product sales the total revenue came in at €152.2 million (£129 million), up from €75.6 million (£64.2 million) in 2011.
The publisher’s game offering was increased by four new titles during 2012, including three new additions to the Angry Birds franchise: Bad Piggies, Angry Birds Space and Angry Birds Star Wars. A new physics-based puzzler, Amazing Alex, was also introduced to Android and iOS app stores as a rebranding of an acquired title.
“Year 2012 was another record-breaking year for Rovio,” said Rovio CFO Herkko Soininen. “We doubled our revenue with an EBIT margin of 50 per cent, more than doubled our headcount, established new offices and a New Business Ventures unit.”
Rovio’s Consumer Products unit also saw a tripling of revenue, as the sales of Angry Birds plush toys and other themed merchandise continued to sell well, actually accounting for 45 per cent of the publisher’s total revenue.
The company looks set to expand its brand, having recently launched the Angry Birds Toons channel within its existing Angry Birds apps. Total numbers of app downloads across its range of titles has already exceeded 1.7 billion, and if the company continues along the same path this number is only set to rise.
“Rovio has grown from a phenomenon to a very successful global business,” said Mikael Hed, CEO at Rovio. “In 2010 we set out to build an entertainment company and after last year’s performance we are on a strong path to achieve our goal.”
During 2012, Rovio also expanded its employee base from 224 to 518 by the end of the year, meaning it can diversify its product and entertainment lines.
“We have had a stellar start for this year. In addition to our successful games portfolio we recently launched our first Angry Birds Toons series through third party partners and our own in-game distribution channel,” added Hed. “We will continue to strengthen our position in the entertainment business through continuing to innovate on our existing brands, exploring creating new IP as well as exploring opportunities with external parties.”
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Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
