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gumi Inc. Launches Berlin Headquarters to Develop Original Titles for Western Audiences

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BERLIN, Germany – July 29, 2015 – gumi Inc. (Tokyo Stock Exchange: 3903), a leading global developer and publisher of mobile games, today revealed that it is establishing its European headquarters in Berlin, Germany. As part of the company’s strategic growth plans, gumi’s Berlin office will be the company’s European headquarters and also a game studio. The new HQ will support gumi’s already established studio in Paris. The Berlin game studio will focus on first party development for Western audiences, blending Japanese free-to-play gaming knowledge with Western themes and tastes.

Additionally, gumi today announced a cooperative with the locally based Berlin Partner organization to develop regional strategic partnerships, and that industry veteran Mirko Hering has joined the Berlin office as Director of Production for Europe to oversee gumi’s pipeline of mobile game titles.

Are Mack Growen, gumi Vice President and Head of Europe, said: “Our IPO in December put us in the fortunate position of being able to think long term as we start to build our presence in Berlin for the Western markets. This is critical as user expectations, development budgets and acquisition costs continue to rise. We aim to become as successful here as gumi has been in the Asian markets, and we now have the funding that it requires.

“At the same time, we are very excited about establishing our next team in Berlin, one of the most vibrant European cities with a strong startup and gaming scene as well as local and international development talent. We will focus on developing core, gamer’s games, linking back to Germany’s long history and love of rich, strategic games. We will establish a brand and original IP from Berlin by coupling a local development approach with our experiences in storytelling and live game operations from Japan.”

Mirko brings a wealth of game industry experience to his new role at gumi, having successfully built and managed both small and large teams for over 10 years at companies including Travian and Koch Media.

Mirko said: “We aim to build a highly experienced development team, which will enable us to reach the production quality users have come to expect in top mobile games today. We believe in face-to-face communication and smaller team sizes. We will make large and focused bets in the mid-core genre in order to drive big rewards and create excellent, rich gaming experiences.”

Berlin is increasingly becoming a technology hub for Germany, fostering innovation and entrepreneurialism with rising real estate and financial investments. According to Berlin Partner’s research, in 2014, Berlin startups received more than $2.2 billion in financing, and the rate of investment continues to climb in 2015. The city’s bright technology scene is resided by both global giants and local entrepreneurs, including Bayer HealthCare, Sanofi Pasteur MSD and Cisco. gumi’s new Berlin headquarters joins the company’s already established European mobile game studio in Paris.

Dr. Stefan Franzke, Management Spokesperson of Berlin Partner of Economics and Technology GmbH, said: “One of the largest publishers in Asia, gumi mobile online games is coming to Berlin – an enrichment for the Berlin Games scene, which consists of a colorful mix of large German and international development companies, small studios and startups. We are delighted that an important publisher of Asia opened a headquarters in Berlin to control its business in Europe, and at the same time, bring a lot of potential for synergies with stakeholders in the Berlin games-world.”

 

Media Contacts

Kate Pietrelli

kate.pietrelli@gumi-america.com

+1 760-518-2633

Ben PerLee

benjamin.perlee@gumi-america.com


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