INTERACTIVE ENTERTAINMENT GIANT WINZO ACQUIRES NCR-BASED GAMING STUDIO UPSKILLZ GAMES
The acquisition will see WinZO onboarding the Blockchain and Web3-based
offering from Upskillz as a part of WinZO’s content portfolio while also adding
Upskillz’s 1.3 million captive audience base to its platform
Reinforcing its strong commitment to the growth of the Game Development ecosystem in the country, India’s Largest Vernacular Interactive Entertainment platform, WinZO has acquired Upskillz Games Private Limited, a Gurugram-based, fast-growth casual game development studio. The all-cash deal saw WinZO acquiring a majority stake of the studio for an undisclosed amount. To maximize this synergy, WinZO will closely collaborate with the Upskillz team from the concept stage of new game developments and will be sharing support in terms of its technical expertise and resources towards this endeavour.
This deal shortly follows a
recent announcement of WinZO making investments in other High Potential Game
Development Studios, namely Bengaluru-based Bombay Play, UK-based Village
Studio and IndiGG, a blockchain based Gaming Guild. These investments were made
by WinZO under its flagship initiative, the $26 Million WinZO Game Developer
Fund which was rolled out with an intention to invest in, and extend the
proprietary technology, innovation, and research that WinZO has built for the
unique mobile-first users of Bharat.
WinZO, which has onboarded
Mahendra Singh Dhoni as its brand ambassador, is India’s largest social gaming
and interactive entertainment platform which boasts of a massive and growing
registered user base of 80 Million + garnering over 2.5 billion
microtransactions per month. The platform hosts 100+ games across 6+ formats of
diverse genres including Casual, E-Sports, Fantasy, and Quizzes on a single
app, WinZO (www.winzogames.com) which is available in 12+
vernacular Indian languages. WinZO, which is widely known for democratising
entrepreneurship among all its stakeholders and partners including the game
developers, envisions creating a conducive and supporting ecosystem for game
development in the country. It aspires to set India on the global map in terms
of game development, creating world-class titles out of India and catering to a
global audience. This makes way for avenues for all relevant stakeholders to
grow holistically, while meaningfully contributing to the overall development
of the industry and the country. WinZO’s initiative is in complete resonance
with the Government’s initiative of Aatmnirbhar Bharat (Self-dependence) and
these steps exhibit WinZO’s commitment and belief in this glorious initiative.
Upskillz Games Pvt. Ltd.
was founded by a first-time entrepreneur, Mr. Mannit Sidhu in December 2020
with a focus on bringing the applications of modern technologies into Gaming.
Since its inception, Upskillz has recorded a tremendous growth in users and
revenues cumulatively growing at a Monthly Rate (CMGR) of 75% since May 2021.
The acquisition will see WinZO onboarding the Blockchain and Web3-based
offering from Upskillz as a part of WinZO’s content portfolio while also adding
Upskillz’s 1.3 million captive audience base to its platform. WinZO, a brand
which is renowned for its revolutionary technological innovations that have
solved and continue to solve real-world business issues which have challenged
the Online Gaming industry for over a decade, adds another feather to its cap
through this acquisition.
Speaking about the
acquisition, the Founder of Upskillz, Mannit Sidhu said, “WinZO is the biggest
player in the Indian social gaming ecosystem with a deep understanding of the
market
and user behaviour. The
unparalleled innovation-based approach at WinZO makes it destined to be the top
player of this $1.5 Billion rapidly growing industry in India. Having the
proponents of these same values at Upskillz, makes this association with WinZO
a natural one. Together, we are committed to develop world-class gaming titles
powered by modern technology for users in India and globally.”
Expressing his views about
the acquisition, Co-founder of WinZO, Paavan Nanda said, “WinZO is glad to
welcome Upskillz as a part of its team. India is at the cusp of a global gaming
revolution today and with the participation of great partners like Upskillz,
WinZO is committed to unlock this latent potential of the Indian game
development industry and set India at its rightful position as a leader of this
$100 billion global mobile gaming market. This is a testament of our commitment
to the Prime Minister’s Atma Nirbhar Bharat initiative and back the
high-quality game development studios in India and nurture the ecosystem. We
look forward to working closely with the Upskillz team to bring world-class
gaming titles for our users and the world”
About WinZO
WinZO is the largest social
gaming and entertainment platform in India. Launched in early 2018, the Company
partners with third party developers to host games on their Android app, where
users can enjoy personalized multiplayer gameplay experiences. The platform is
available in 12 languages such as English, Hindi, Gujarati, Marathi, Bengali,
and Bhojpuri, with over 65 million registered users. The WinZO platform
facilitates over 2.5 billion micro-transactions per month across a portfolio of
80+ games. WinZO is focused on building an enthusiastic community of gamers and
gaming influencers in Tier II to IV cities in India. The Company envisions a
future where the WinZO platform can deliver a culturally relevant and enjoyable
experience in the Indian gaming ecosystem, monetized through a unique
micro-transaction model.
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