A Year of Partnership: Rovio and Sega's Growing Collaboration

It has been over a year since Sega acquired Rovio in a deal valued at €706 million. As a subsidiary of Sega's European division, Rovio has spent the past twelve months integrating into the company and providing tools and support to expand Sega's mobile capabilities. One of the key projects they are working on together is the upcoming battle royale title, Sonic Rumble, set to release this winter. GamesIndustry.biz had the opportunity to speak with Timo Rahkonen at Gamescom, where he reflected on the partnership and what the future holds for both companies. Rahkonen noted that prior to the acquisition, there was a lengthy process that allowed Rovio to gain insight into Sega's operations, business scale, and intellectual property portfolio. This due diligence helped Rovio determine whether Sega was the right fit for their company. Since the acquisition, Rovio has had to adapt to Sega's cultural differences as a Japanese-owned company. However, Rahkonen believes this has been a positive experience, as Sega has experience working with international studios and is open to learning from Rovio's straightforward and transparent approach. Rovio operates relatively independently within Sega, with its own strategy and budget. The company collaborates with various Sega studios and reports to the Tokyo headquarters. Rahkonen has found that having a direct relationship with Sega's executives has been beneficial, as it allows for faster decision-making and maximizes opportunities. Rovio has been supporting Sega through its Beacon platform, which provides developers with tools for publishing, updates, live operations, and user acquisition. Rahkonen suggests that Beacon could be utilized across all of Sega's games in the future. For example, the platform is being integrated into Sonic Rumble, a project that Rovio and Sega are working on together. Rovio is responsible for the marketing, user acquisition, and community development of the game, while Sega handles the development. Rahkonen also mentioned that Rovio is helping to grow Sega's Japanese title, Project Sekai Hatsune Miku, in Western markets. However, the primary focus for now is on the Sonic franchise. Rahkonen emphasized that Sonic is just the starting point for this partnership and that there are many other games Rovio would like to work on, including IPs like Persona and Yakuza. Although Rovio currently doesn't have the capabilities to work on these titles, Rahkonen believes that they could either build or acquire the necessary capabilities in the future. Sega is open to Rovio working on other franchises in their portfolio, with Rahkonen noting that the company isn't limiting Rovio's opportunities. Instead, the focus is on identifying business opportunities that can create value for both players and shareholders. Rovio has not abandoned its own franchises, such as Angry Birds, and is actually planning to broaden the IP's reach onto PC and console with Sega's support. The company is also working on several new free-to-play mobile games, which remains a core area of focus for Rovio. With the upcoming release of Sonic Rumble and the box office debut of Sonic the Hedgehog 3, Rovio hopes to replicate the success of this transmedia event with Angry Birds, following the announcement of the third movie. Rahkonen emphasized that the partnership between Rovio and Sega has only just begun to scratch the surface of its potential, and that the company is focused on building a foundation for long-term success.