Hasbro Acquires Majority Stake in Backflip Studios
Hasbro, Inc., announced that it has acquired a majority stake in Backflip Studios. The Boulder, Colo.-based company develops mobile games including DragonVale, NinJump, and Paper Toss. Hasbro said in a statement that it paid $112 million in an all-cash transaction for 70 percent of the company.
Founded in 2009 by Julian Farrior, Dale Thoms, and Tom Blind, Backflip Studios has become one of the fastest growing and most profitable mobile game studios with more than 300 million downloads of its games, according to Hasbro. Other titles in its portfolio include, Ragdoll Blaster, Army of Darkness Defense, and OutWorded.
Backflip will continue to develop its own IP, as well as create mobile games featuring many of Hasbro’s brands. As part of the transaction, Backflip’s management team will continue to run the company, which will remain in Boulder. Hasbro says it anticipates the transaction to be neutral to slightly accretive to its 2013 financial results.
Kid Brands Sells Russ, Applause Names
Kid Brands, Inc., announced that, on June 30, 2013, the company sold the “Russ” and “Applause” trademarks and trade names and associated goodwill, which were assets retained by the company when it sold its gift business in late 2008. The buyer is Larsen and Bowman Holdings Ltd., a Limited Corporation organized under the laws of British Columbia. The purchase price for the intellectual property, which has no value on Kid Brands’ books, according to the statement released by the company, was $1.25 million, payable by promissory note.
Kid Brands, Inc., current operating subsidiaries consist of Kids Line, LLC; LaJobi, Inc; Sassy, Inc.; and CoCaLo, Inc.