Animoca Brands’ Garfield Chef Published by China’s Largest Smartphone Maker, Xiaomi
Highlights:
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Deal signed with leading Chinese mobile and electronics company Xiaomi to publish Animoca Brands’ popular mobile gaming app Garfield Chef, which is co-developed with Chinese mobile game company Citrus Joy
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Xiaomi granted exclusive rights to publish the Garfield Chef app throughout China on both iOS and Android operating systems
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Strong performance in first month with over 1.5 million downloads achieved through the agreement with Xiaomi
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Agreement represents Animoca Brand’s ability to partner with leading Chinese companies as it continues to expand its distribution channels in the world’s largest and fastest-growing mobile market
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Expansion of distribution channels continues to drive user acquisition and revenue
Hong Kong – 3 February 2016, Animoca Brands (ASX: AB1 or the “Company”) today announces Xiaomi has published a localised version of the popular mobile game Garfield Chef throughout China, which garnered over 1.5 million downloads in its first month on Xiaomi’s App Store.
Xiaomi is the number one smartphone maker in China, and a market leading electronics company that designs, develops and sells mobile apps, smartphones and related consumer products. Xiaomi has dominant market share in the Chinese mobile market, and posted net revenue of US$12bn in 2014. In 2015 it sold 61 million handsets, cementing its leadership in China.
As part of the agreement, Xiaomi has exclusive rights to publish the Garfield Chef gaming app in China on both the Apple® and Android™ mobile platforms. With over 900 million smartphones estimated in circulation (source: GSMA Intelligence Q1 2015), the Chinese market is a significant opportunity for Animoca Brands.
Xiaomi will increase Animoca Brands’ access to the fast-growing market in China as it distributes the Garfield Chef app across the users of Xiaomi mobile operating systems, used by over 150 million users worldwide. Globally, Xiaomi is the world’s fourth largest smartphone maker, with a 5% total market share (IDC).
The Android version of Garfield Chef went live on Xiaomi’s App Store on 16 December 2015, and Xiaomi expects to launch the iPhone® and iPad® version on 4 February 2016.
The agreement with Xiaomi further demonstrates Animoca Brands’ ability to grow its distribution channels and market share in Asia and internationally by partnering with powerful industry leaders. As the Company continues to expand its distribution channels, its user growth increases, leading to growth in revenue from in-app purchases and advertising.
Robby Yung, CEO of Animoca Brands commented:
“The signing of this publishing deal with Xiaomi is a significant win for Animoca Brands as we continue to focus on expanding internationally and partnering with global industry leaders as part of our global growth strategy.
“We look forward to working with Xiaomi on this upcoming venture and welcome the opportunity to roll out our popular Garfield Chef mobile game in the fast-growing Chinese Market”.
Animoca Brands develops and publishes a variety of Garfield games based on a partnership with Garfield’s official licensor Paws, Inc. The Garfield comic strip was created by Jim Davis and first published on 19 June 1978, achieving global success. Garfield holds the Guinness World Record as the most widely syndicated comic strip in history, and the title character has been the star of television series, feature films, comic books and video games.
Garfield Chef is co-developed by Animoca Brands and Citrus Joy.
Apple, the Apple logo, iPhone and iPad are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries. Google Play and Android are trademarks of Google Inc.
About Animoca Brands
Animoca Brands Corporation Ltd (ASX: AB1) publishes globally a broad portfolio of mobile games, including several games based on popular intellectual properties such as Garfield, various Mattel brands, Ultraman, and Doraemon. The company’s games have been downloaded over 170 million times. Animoca Brands is based in Hong Kong. For more information visit www.animocabrands.com.
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