HONG KONG, August 28, 2024 – (ACN Newswire) – IGG Inc. 2024 Financial Highlights and H2 2024 Outlook:
– In the first half of 2024, the Group’s revenue increased by 9% year-on-year, reaching a total of HK$2.74 billion. This growth was primarily driven by the steady success of two highly rated strategy games, “Doomsday: Last Survivors” and “Viking Rise”, as well as the strong performance of the APP business (1). “Doomsday: Last Survivors” and “Viking Rise” contributed approximately HK$500 million and HK$300 million to the Group’s revenue, respectively, while the APP business generated HK$400 million to the Group’s revenue. These contributions underscore the Group’s commitment to diversified growth and highlight the significant role of these key revenue drivers.
– Lords Mobile, IGG’s flagship title launched eight years ago, contributed HK$1.34 billion.
– Following the Group’s successful turnaround from a loss to an annual net profit of HK$73 million in 2023, the Group recorded a significant increase in net profit, reaching HK$330 million in the first half of 2024. The Group’s core business achieved a net profit of over HK$350 million, while the investment business recorded a slight loss of approximately HK$25 million due to fair value changes of investee companies.
– The Board of Directors has declared an interim dividend of HK$8.5 per ordinary share, representing approximately 30% of the net profit for the first half of 2024. The Group spent almost HK$33 million on share buybacks in the first half of the year. The declared dividend plus the amount spent on share buybacks represents approximately 40% of the Group’s net profit for the first half of 2024.
– In the second half of 2024, Viking Rise and the APP business are expected to reach new highs, with monthly gross revenues of HK$80 million and HK$120 million in the last two months, respectively. With steady growth of the core game business and the APP business, the Group expects to maintain sustainable profitability in the long term.
IGG Inc (“IGG” or the “Group”, stock symbol: 799.HK), a leading global developer and publisher of mobile games and applications, announces its unaudited consolidated interim results for the six months ended June 30, 2024.
Having achieved a remarkable turnaround from loss to profit in 2023, the Group is now directing its efforts towards “profit-oriented growth” in 2024. In terms of revenue, the Group recorded a year-on-year increase of 9%, reaching HK$2.74 billion in the first half of 2024. This growth was primarily due to the consistent contributions of the two highly rated strategy games “Doomsday: Last Survivors” and “Viking Rise”, as well as the outstanding performance of the APP business. “Lords Mobile”, IGG’s flagship title launched eight years ago, contributed HK$1.34 billion in the first half of 2024. During this period, “Doomsday: Last Survivors” and “Viking Rise” generated approximately HK$500 million and HK$300 million respectively, replacing “Lords Mobile” as the new growth drivers. Following its restructuring in early 2024, the APP business quickly regained momentum, achieving record revenue of HK$400 million in the first half of 2024, accounting for 15% of the Group’s total revenue and establishing itself as a diversified growth catalyst. During this period, revenue from Asia, Europe and North America accounted for 41%, 34% and 21% of the Group’s total revenue, respectively.
With the contribution of the above businesses, continuous resource optimization and comprehensive use of AI technology, the Group achieved a net profit of HK$330 million in the first half of 2024. The Group’s core business achieved a net profit of over HK$350 million, while the investment business recorded a slight loss of approximately HK$25 million due to fair value changes of the investees. As of 30 June 2024, the Group’s mobile games were available in 23 different languages worldwide, with a total of approximately 1.45 billion players and 17 million monthly active users (“MAU”) in more than 200 countries and regions.
“Viking Rise,” the group’s first Viking-themed strategy game, received critical acclaim upon its release in late 2022. In the first half of 2024, the group continued to enhance the game’s content and introduced a variety of in-game features, including social gaming, instances, and guild battles. In a marketing campaign, the group partnered with HafPor Julius Bjornsson, the “World’s Strongest Man” and renowned actor from the classic American television series, to be the leading authority on the new game mode, Valhalla Drill. In addition, the collaboration between the game and MGM Television’s popular television series “Vikings” and its spin-off series “Vikings: Valhalla” has been very well received by the game’s 30 million players. With the recent marketing initiatives, the game is expected to set a new record in August, with monthly gross revenue expected to reach HK$80 million.
The group expanded the first version of “Doomsday: Last Survivors” and introduced an exciting mix of MOBA (Multiplayer Online Battle Arena) and Battle Royale features to the strategy game. To further enhance the experience, the group introduced “Genesis War,” an exciting large-scale guild battle that adds a new dimension to the game and boosts the average monthly gross revenue to HK$86 million. The group worked on the popular fighting game “THE KING OF FIGHTERS ’97” and held the first international offline SLG championship for “Doomsday: Last Survivors” and “Lords Mobile.” This groundbreaking tournament is a first for the gaming industry.
“Lords Mobile”, IGG’s innovative blockbuster title, is the Group’s first cross-platform, multilingual real-time game developed for players around the world. Launched in 2016, the game has been well received by players and is known for its longevity(1) and ability to generate stable revenue for the Group, recording 710 million registered users and 9.5 million MAU worldwide as of June 30, 2024. The Group unveiled a number of exciting new marketing initiatives, including the highly anticipated “Guild Expedition” feature and collaborations with prestigious partners such as legendary Italian sports car manufacturer “PAGANI”, blockbuster films such as “Shrek” and “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire”, and fighting game “THE KING OF FIGHTERS XV” to provide players with a refreshing gaming experience.
Following a strategic restructuring in early 2024, the APP Business quickly regained momentum, achieving notable milestones in gross billings and user acquisition. During the period, the APP Business saw monthly gross billings increase to an impressive HK$100 million, contributing a substantial HK$400 million to revenue for the period, representing 15% of the Group’s total revenue. This cemented the APP Business as a key catalyst for diversified growth within the Group, boasting over 41 million MAU as of 30 June 2024. The Group’s commitment to promoting and diversifying its product portfolio leveraging its platform-based business model resulted in the APP Business achieving monthly gross revenue of HK$120 million in July.
Through a combination of share buybacks and dividend distributions, the Group continually returns value to its shareholders. During the period, the Group bought back nearly 10 million shares for an equivalent value of nearly HK$33 million, representing approximately 10% of interim profit. The Board declared an interim dividend of HK$8.5 per ordinary share, representing approximately 30% of interim profit. The dividend declared plus the amount spent on share buyback represents approximately 40% of the Group’s net profit for H1 2024.
By adhering to its long-term operating strategy, the Group will achieve steady growth in both its core gaming business and APP business. In addition, the Group will continue to leverage artificial intelligence generated content (“AIGC”) technology to optimize costs and increase profitability. Increased marketing initiatives for “Viking Rise” and the continued growth of the APP business are driving the Group’s upward trajectory and positioning it for sustainable profitability in the long term. True to the corporate spirit of “Innovators at Work, Gamers at Heart”, the Group will continue to strengthen its global R&D and operating capabilities to relentlessly pursue its strategy of quality, innovation and excellence in developing innovative yet timeless games.
(1) APP Business: the Group’s mobile applications
(2) Source: Sensor Tower, a third-party analytics platform
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About IGG Inc
Founded in 2006, IGG Inc. is a leading global developer and operator of mobile games and applications with headquarters in Singapore and offices in the United States, China, Canada, Japan, South Korea, Thailand, the Philippines, Indonesia, Brazil, Turkey, Italy and Spain. IGG offers multilingual and diverse games to users around the world. The group has established long-term partnerships with over 100 business partners, including global platforms, advertising channels and providers such as Apple, Google and Meta. IGG’s most popular games include Lords Mobile, Doomsday: Last Survivors, Viking Rise, Castle Clash and Time Princess.
Source: IGG Inc
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