Published: January 20, 2011

Kabam Raises $30 Million to Fuel Growth of Massively Multiplayer Social Games

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REDWOOD CITY, Calif. - (BUSINESS WIRE) - Kabam, a leading developer of massively multiplayer social games, today announced it has raised $30 million in series C funding to fuel its aggressive growth plans. The round is led by Redpoint Ventures and Intel Capital with additional funding from original investor Canaan Partners, which incubated Kabam in its offices at the seed stage.

"Kabam has pursued a distinctly different strategy than other social game companies. Rather than target 'casual' players, we are focused on creating a new segment of games that appeal to a more core gamer demographic," said Kevin Chou, CEO of Kabam. "Our market success to date demonstrates that our strategy of creating this new segment of massively multiplayer social games is really resonating with players. This infusion of capital enables us to further our aggressive growth plans as we continue to hire the industry's best engineering and creative talent and seek appropriate acquisition and partnership opportunities in the technology, team, and product areas."

Kabam games appeal to the growing number of gamers engaged on social networks by combining the deep, immersive gameplay found in massively multiplayer online strategy and role-playing games with the social connectivity and interaction provided by social platforms. The company's recent titles, including IGN Reader's Choice Best Facebook Game of 2010 Kingdoms of Camelot, Dragons of Atlantis , and Glory of Rome , are representative of the company's strategic vision for a high quality portfolio. Unlike casual social games where interactions only occur out of game when players request assistance from friends, Kabam games provide "synchronous gameplay," where people play with and against other players in real time in persistent game worlds inhabited by millions globally. Other features, such as the competitive nature of play and real time chat, further distinguish Kabam games from the crowded field of "casual" social games.

"Social gaming has seen explosive growth, and Kabam has done what no other company has been able to accomplish-create a compelling social game experience that carves out a new segment among core gamers while establishing a very strong business model," said Maha Ibrahim, general partner at Canaan Partners, which has provided funding and counsel to Kabam since its founding. "This heavily oversubscribed Series C financing round validates Kabam's leadership in this market."

"Kabam's commitment to leading the creation of the next wave of social games is extremely exciting and we're eager to see it continue to experience explosive growth around the world," added Allen Beasley of Redpoint Ventures, a leading venture capital firm based in Menlo Park, CA.

Kabam, which has grown from 20 employees at the beginning of 2010 to over 200 today, has recently added studios in San Francisco and China, to its Redwood City headquarters, and is actively hiring to fuel further growth. The company's rapid expansion has been led by a standout management team that brings deep experience in building companies in the internet and entertainment spaces from companies such as Electronic Arts, Blizzard, Google, Intuit, PayPal, and Lucasfilm.

The company has several new games scheduled for launch in early 2011, with further games and strategic initiatives slated to follow later in the year. These new funds will be used to further expand Kabam's studios, produce a greater assortment of original and branded social games, and make targeted acquisitions similar to the company's acquisition of WonderHill in October 2010.

For more information on Kabam, visit our official site at www.kabam.com, and also our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/kabam.

About Kabam

Kabam is leading the next wave in social gaming by developing and publishing massively multiplayer social games (MMSGs). The company's studios focus on combining the best elements of traditional and social gaming to appeal to a growing audience of gamers looking for deeper, more engaging social games. The first wave of Kabam's new games for Facebook and leading media sites have been widely recognized for their depth of play and social interaction. Founded in 2006, Kabam has offices in San Francisco and Redwood City, Calif., and Beijing, China. More information about Kabam can be found at www.kabam.com.

About Canaan Partners

Canaan Partners invests in visionary entrepreneurs and provides them the networks, insights and operational guidance required to build high-performance technology and healthcare companies. Founded in 1987, the firm has raised eight funds and completed more than 83 acquisitions and 52 IPOs. With $3 billion under management and a worldwide footprint, the firm is committed to catalyzing the growth of innovative digital media, communications & mobility, enterprise, clean tech, biopharmaceutical, medical device, diagnostics and healthcare infrastructure companies. Among its successes are Associated Content, the people's media company; VOIP equipment supplier Acme Packet; Amicus Therapeutics, a pioneer of next-generation oral therapies for the management of human genetic diseases; BiPar Sciences, a biopharmaceutical company pioneering novel tumor-selective therapies to address urgent unmet needs of cancer patients; Calixa Therapeutics, developer of hospital-based antibiotics to treat infections resulting from resistant strains of bacteria; Cerexa Inc., one of the largest biotech acquisitions of 2007; CommerceOne, the company that pioneered B2B ecommerce; DoubleClick, the leading online advertising solution; Match.com, the most popular online dating site in the world; and SuccessFactors, the global leader in on-demand performance and talent management solutions. Other Canaan investments include Active Networks, Advanced BioHealing, BharatMatrimony, blip.tv, Blurb, Calibra Medical, Chimerix, Inc., Equitas, iYogi, KABAM, Lending Club, Liquidia Technologies, LiveU, Motorexchange, ON24, OpenSky, N-trig, Naaptol, Prime Sense, SOASTA, ReVision Optics, SandForce, Theraclone Sciences, Tremor Media, UnitedLex and Zoosk. Canaan maintains a presence in California, Connecticut, New York, India and Israel. For more information visit www.canaan.com.

About Redpoint Ventures

Redpoint Ventures has helped entrepreneurs build innovative businesses that defy convention, shape the future, and change the world. From early investments in industry pioneers like MySpace, Netflix, TiVo, and Juniper to companies such as RightMedia, Zimbra, LifeSize, Danger, Fortinet, Heroku and HomeAway - we stand behind our entrepreneurs helping them go all the way to the top. With our deep experience and focus on quality, we offer entrepreneurs a culture and approach that values mutual respect, meaningful relationships, and an intense commitment to succeed. Redpoint (http://www.redpoint.com) was founded in 1999 and currently has over $2 billion under management. Its partners have been involved in 39 IPOs and 65 upside acquisitions. The firm is headquartered in Menlo Park, CA with offices in Los Angeles and Shanghai, China.

About Intel Capital

Intel Capital, Intel's global investment organization, makes equity investments in innovative technology start-ups and companies worldwide. Intel Capital invests in a broad range of companies offering hardware, software, and services targeting enterprise, home, mobility, health, consumer Internet, semiconductor manufacturing, and cleantech. Since 1991, Intel Capital has invested more than US$9.5 billion in over 1,050 companies in 47 countries. In that timeframe, 175 portfolio companies have gone public on various exchanges around the world and 241 were acquired or participated in a merger. In 2009, Intel Capital invested US$327 million in 107 investments with approximately 50 percent of funds invested outside the United States and Canada. For more information on Intel Capital and its differentiated advantages, visit www.intelcapital.com.

About Betfair

Betfair is one of the world's largest international online sports betting providers and pioneered the betting exchange in 2000. Driven by cutting-edge technology, Betfair enables customers to choose their own odds and bet against each other. The company now processes over five million transactions a day from its three million registered customers around the world. In addition to sports betting, Betfair offers a portfolio of innovative products including casino, exchange games and poker. Betfair has twice been named the UK's 'Company of the Year' by the Confederation of British Industry and has won two prestigious Queen's Awards for Enterprise, being recognised for Innovation in 2003 and most recently for International Trade in 2008. Betfair currently employs over 2,000 people worldwide. The company holds betting licences in the UK, the US, Tasmania, Italy and Malta. For more information on Betfair please visit www.betfair.com.

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