Finnish start-up Supercell reports stellar game rise

Finnish computer game maker Supercell reported on Wednesday a huge leap in sales in 2013, multiplying its annual revenue by eight, thanks to two best-selling games.

Founded in 2010, the start-up said in a statement that its revenue in 2013 amounted to 672 million euros ($916.7 million), compared to 78 million euros in 2012 and zero in 2011.

Supercell did not publish net profit figures, but operating profit in 2013 was 349 million euros, nine times higher than the 38 million euros reported a year earlier.

Supercell's success is based on the popularity of two mobile phone games: Clash of Clans, where the player builds a village and accumulates resources, and Hay Day, in which the user runs a farm.

In March, the company plans a global launch of its military strategy game Boom Beach, currently available only in Canada and Australia.

In October, Supercell's founders sold control of the company to two Japanese investors, mobile carrier SoftBank and game developer GungHo, which acquired 51 percent of the company's shares for 1.1 billion euros ($1.5 billion).

Its 78-million-euro revenue in 2012 was already more than half of that of its Finnish competitor Rovio, creator of the popular Angry Birds game.

© 2014 AFP