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Zynga in talks to acquire Draw Something dev OMGPOP, says source

Other buyers also interested

Zynga in talks to acquire Draw Something dev OMGPOP, says source
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| OMGPOP news

On the back of Draw Something's swift success – 30 million downloads amassed in its first five weeks – social giant Zynga is in talks to buy the studio behind it, OMGPOP.

That's based on the account of an unnamed source cited by TechCrunch, which claims Zynga is one of multiple buyers lining up behind the New York-based outfit.

Offers are expected to be in the range of $150 million to $250 million, largely owing to the $17 million of VC funding the studio has been able to raise to date.

Drawing momentum

Neither Zynga nor OMGPOP itself has commented on the buyout talk, though the acquisition would represent the largest purchase by Zynga, with the firm looking to build its portfolio following its initial public offering back in December.

It's widely speculated Zynga will look to raise an additional $400 million in a secondary stock offering as the firm looks to avoid a fall in the firm's share price when existing investors sell their shares on in the months to come.

For its part, OMGPOP is also planning to build on its existing success, with further unnamed sources pointing to a loose plan to turn the Draw Something IP into a television quiz show.

The studio's CEO Dan Porter has claimed the firm's current focus, however, is on increasing Draw Something's ad revenue, partnering with additional ad networks to up the game's fill rate.

[source: TechCrunch]

Keith Andrew
Keith Andrew
With a fine eye for detail, Keith Andrew is fuelled by strong coffee, Kylie Minogue and the shapely curve of a san serif font. He's also Pocket Gamer's resident football gaming expert and, thanks to his work on PG.biz, monitors the market share of all mobile OSes on a daily basis.