SUMMARY
Nazara Technologies will pick up 51% stake in the company with the deal
Paper Boat Apps makes the famous Kiddopia app which enjoys a strong presence in the US
The company will now expand into India using NAzara's network
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Mumbai-based gaming and digital media company Nazara Technologies has invested INR 83.5 Cr in Paper Boat Apps, a Mumbai based indie studio today. The company said it had acquired a majority stake of 51% in Paper Boat Apps at a pre-money valuation of INR 154 Cr.
Paper Boat Apps is the creator and publisher of Kiddopia, a subscription based preschool edutainment app. Kiddopia offers a wide array of interactive games and activities that foster cognitive development, self-expression and also social-emotional learning. The company has grown 5X in the last 2 years.
”This investment will help us grow our team, strengthen our market share in the US and expand to other high value markets such as Latin America, Europe and Japan. We also plan to leverage Nazara’s existing network of users to quickly grow in India, Southeast Asia and the Middle East,” Anupam Dhanuka, cofounder and CEO, Paper Boat Apps said.
Nazara has been on a roll, acquiring stakes in as many as 5 gaming and digital media companies in the past one year. The company acquired a stake in SportsKeeda, a sports content website run by Absolute Sports and SportsUnity, a mobile quizzing platform. Further, it has also increased its stake in HalaPlay, a real money gaming app.
In the past, Nazara has acquired NODWIN Gaming, DJuzz and MyGamma and has invested in startups such as MasterMind Sports, BakBuck, Truly Social, InstaSportz, and Moong Labs.
Speaking about the latest acquisition, Nitish Mittersain founder and MD, Nazara Technologies Ltd. said that Kiddopia will be leveraged to over 100 Mn users through the Nazara network
Paper Boat Apps was founded in 2013 by husband-wife duo, Anupam and Anshu Dhanuka as a boot-strapped startup. In July 2017, Paper Boat Apps launched their flagship app, Kiddopia. The app became an instant hit and reached the #1 rank in the Kids category on the US App Store.
Nazara is aggressively expanding in real money skill gaming space and while it has already got a stake in real money fantasy gaming, the quizzing app will give it another revenue channel, especially as quizzing has a broader appeal than fantasy gaming.
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