Japanese game company DeNA is hoping to tempt developers to Mobage Town, a gaming portal. Specifically, it’s using a new pool of cash called Incubate Fund No. 1. DeNA has invested $27.5 million in the $33 million fund.
The company, which operates a US arm out of San Mateo, Calif., is pitching the investment as its next move in a showdown with American social gaming giant Zynga. The latter company is probably better-known to VentureBeat readers, but DeNA has impressive numbers too. It reported $517 million in revenue during fiscal year 2009, and estimates that it will earn $820 million this year. It also recently announced a partnership with Yahoo Japan to create social games.
Zynga, meanwhile, is estimated to be earning $50 million per month, and it’s looking to expand internationally, as indicated by a $187 million investment from Japan’s SoftBank.
DeNA said the fund will provide seed rounds to social game developers. American developers who want to bring their games to Japan are welcome to apply. For ore information about the Incubate Fund, email [email protected].
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