Electronic Arts has confirmed its acquisition of social games developer Playfish in a deal worth around $275m (£161m).Founded in 2007, Playfish has gained a reputation as an expert in creating popular games for Facebook and other social networking websites. The firm's ten biggest titles currently attract around 60 million active players every month, driving over one billion game sessions.
Following today's purchase, the studio will become part of the EA Interactive group, which is the publishing giant's web and wireless specialist.
"Social gaming, with its emphasis on friends and community, is seeing tremendous growth and this is the right time to invest to strengthen our participation in this space," said EA Interactive senior vice president and general manager Barry Cottle.
"EAi has been successfully leading the charge for EA, and with the addition of proven expertise from Playfish, their broad consumer base and strong game brands, we're moving ahead aggressively in our plans to lead in the category of cross-platform social entertainment."
Playfish chief executive Kristian Segerstrale added: "The industry is undergoing dramatic transformation and joining EA is the ideal opportunity for us to push forward our goals to lead in the social entertainment evolution on a faster and much larger scale.
"EAi's vision and entrepreneurial culture are consistent with our own, and together, we are in position to be the company that defines new and innovative connected experiences that will change the way people play games."
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