Angry Birds developer Rovio to open stores in China

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Angry Birds maker Rovio has announced plans to open stores in China within 12 months.

Unofficial merchandise connected to the videogame has already proved popular in the country.The company's chief marketing officer, Peter Vesterbacka, made the announcement at the Techcrunch conference in Beijing. He said he was targeting $100m (£62m) in sales from the shops in their first year of operation. "On the physical side, we don't have a lot of our officially licensed products out here, so we have ourselves to blame," he told the conference.

Mr Vesterbacka said he had been to China many times "checking out the Angry Birds' presence". He told delegates he was unhappy with the quality of the unofficial products, but had also gained "a lot of inspiration from the copyists". The comment drew laughter from the audience. "It is great that the brand is so loved," he added.

Egg hunt The China rollout is planned to precede stores in the....Read more here---> BBC News - Angry Birds developer Rovio to open stores in China

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Angry Birds-themed activity parks launch worldwide

Angry Birds-themed activity parks are set to be constructed around the world. The mobile game's Finnish developer Rovio has paired up with the playground equipment specialist Lappset Group to create and maintain the parks. They will feature interactive content and "exclusive" downloads. The first will be built in Finland this summer, with UK locations to follow. An unauthorised Angry Birds park opened in China last year, but this marks the first official licensing deal. The game - in which players use a slingshot to fling outsized birds at pigs hiding in destructible buildings - is the most popular paid-for mobile app of all time. In addition to the game, the series has spawned a raft of merchandise such as cuddly toys and clothing.

The parks, the creators said, would encourage fans into more physical activity. "Rovio wanted to invite people who play the game to not only sit inside on the sofa, but to go out, move themselves and have fun," Lappset's marketing director Johan Granholm told the BBC. "You have large screens where you can....Read more here---: BBC News - Angry Birds-themed activity parks launch worldwide

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Angry Birds Creators Now Worth £5.5bn

The company behind the Angry Birds mobile phone game has been valued at £5.5bn - nearly as much as phonemaker Nokia.

The download - where players use a slingshot to attack pigs who steal birds' eggs - has now been downloaded 800 million times. Sales for the game's creators Rovio Entertainment - started by three students - jumped tenfold last year to £61m. Now the game, made for the iPhone and also available on Facebook, is being developed into a 52-episode TV series and a Hollywood movie. The Finnish company launched its latest Angry Birds game - Angry Birds in Space - in March and it was downloaded 50 million times in 35 days.

Rovio said its finances were good enough for a listing after revealing the highly profitable 2011 in its first public disclosure of business results. The company was founded in 2003 but became a global phenomenon after it launched Angry Birds in late 2009....Read more here--: Angry Birds Maker Rovio Entertainment Worth £5.5bn After Game Downloaded 800 Million Times | Technology | Sky News