Rovio returns to profitable growth
Record performance in Games division and uplift from The Angry Birds Movie drive revenue up by a third year-on-year
Rovio Entertainment Oy has returned to profitable growth after a highly successful 2016, which saw a record performance in the company’s Games division and a blockbuster release of The Angry Birds Movie. Gross revenue of Rovio grew by 34% to 190,3 mEUR, (142,1 mEUR in 2015). Earnings Before Interests and Taxes (EBIT) improved to 17,5 mEUR (-21,1 mEUR in 2015).
All figures in the table are reported in accordance with Finnish Accounting Standard. 2016 figures are preliminary.
| Rovio Entertainment Group, mEUR | 2016 | 2015 | Change |
| Group Revenue | 190,3 | 142,1 | 48,2 |
| Games Division Revenue | 159,0 | 113,5 | 45,5 |
| Animation Division Revenue | 31,3 | 28,6 | 2,7 |
| Rovio Group EBIT | 17,5 | -21,1 | 38,6 |
| Games Division EBIT | 29,6 | 4,0 | 25,6 |
| Animation Division EBIT | -2,2 | -13,1 | 10,9 |
Games division achieved very strong growth, while improving its profitability significantly
Rovio´s Games division made 159,0 mEUR in revenue (113,5 mEUR in 2015). Along with very strong revenue growth, Games division improved its profitability significantly. Earnings Before Interests and Taxes (EBIT) increased to 29,6 mEUR (4,0 mEUR in 2015) giving a profit margin (EBIT margin) of 19%.
The strong growth of Games division is based on extended life cycles and improved performance metrics of Rovio’s key games. Rovio’s best performing games in 2016 included Angry Birds 2, Angry Birds Friends and Angry Birds POP, all with increased revenues year on year.
Animation division increased its revenue and improved profitability
The gross revenue of Animation division was 31,3 mEUR (28,6 mEUR in 2015). Earnings Before Interests and Taxes (EBIT) of Animation division was -2,2 mEUR (-13,1 mEUR in 2015). The highlight of Rovio’s Animation division in 2016 was the global release of The Angry Birds Movie hitting nearly $350 million at the worldwide box office. The Angry Birds Movie opened number one in 52 countries and was the third largest foreign animated movie in China ever. Most of the revenues related to the movie will be recognised in 2017 and 2018.
Outlook for 2017
In 2017 Rovio Entertainment will continue to invest in development and performance marketing of games. With a strong fan engagement, uplift in the Angry Birds brand, brand licensing activities, and revenues from The Angry Birds Movie, the company sees opportunities to further improve profitability while staying on its growth track.
CEO comments
“Both our growth and profitability targets were exceeded in 2016. With the all-time high performance of our games portfolio and the success of The Angry Birds Movie, I am very happy to see Rovio’s revenue and profit developing very positively. Rovio’s games business is growing fast, and this year we will see several new exciting Rovio games bringing attractive experiences to everyone and supporting Rovio’s long-term growth. I am also very proud to see two of our games, Angry Birds 2 and the newest release, Angry Birds Blast, in top 50 grossing games list in the US. I can just thank our fans and our amazing team at Rovio for making this turnaround happen.” says CEO Kati Levoranta.
More information:
Tomi Närhinen
Chief Financial Officer
+358 40 7243896
Kaisu Karvala
VP, Communications & PR
+358 40 5715990
Rovio Entertainment Ltd., based in Espoo, Finland, is the creator of Angry Birds, the casual mobile game that changed an industry and became an international phenomenon. Today Angry Birds is not only the most downloaded series of games of all time, it is a renowned entertainment brand that has branched out into animation, licensing and more. The Angry Birds Movie was released in May 2016. www.rovio.com
