REG - Keywords Studios PLC - Acquisition

Keywords StudiosAnnouncement

03/08/2022 07:15

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RNS Number : 7401U  Keywords Studios PLC  03 August 2022

3 August 2022

 

Keywords Studios plc ("Keywords Studios", "Keywords", the "Group")

 

Acquisition of Mighty Games and the completion of the acquisition of
Forgotten Empires

 

Mighty Games' automated AI based technology will enhance Keywords' games
testing solutions

 

Keywords Studios, the international technical and creative services provider
to the global video games industry, today announces that it has acquired
Mighty Games Group Pty Ltd ("Mighty Games", "Mighty") and has completed the
acquisition of Forgotten Empires, LLC ("Forgotten Empires").  These
acquisitions will further the Group's strategy to become the 'go to' technical
and creative services platform for the global video games industry.

 

Founded in 2013 by studio head Matt Ditton and co-founder Ben Britten-Smith,
who will continue leading Mighty Games within Keywords Studios, the studio
specialises in the development of automated games testing solutions including
its "Build and Test" platform.  Build and Test uses AI technology deployed on
multiple machines to automatically test code, detect bugs and defects and
report errors on a 24/7 basis.  Mighty is based in Melbourne, Australia and,
in addition to games testing solutions, the 21 person team provides game
development services for clients including global mobile game developers as
well as Australian developers and publishers.

 

Under the terms of the Mighty Games acquisition, Keywords will pay a maximum
amount of AUD$10.0m, comprised of initial cash consideration of
AUD$4.8m, the equivalent of AUD$1.2m in new ordinary shares to be issued
within 30 days of completion, and up to AUD$4.0m, in a mix of cash and new
ordinary shares based on growth targets being met over the three years
following completion.  The new ordinary shares in Keywords Studios to be
issued are subject to one-year lock in periods and orderly market provisions
for a further year.

 

Further to the announcement of 8 June 2022, Keywords is pleased to announce
that it has completed the acquisition of Forgotten Empires on the terms
previously announced.

 

Bertrand Bodson, CEO of Keywords Studios commented:

 

"We are delighted to welcome the Mighty Games team to Keywords and to be able
to offer their impressive automated game testing solutions and expertise to
our clients, in line with our strategy to harness technology to do more for
our clients and remain at the forefront of our industry.  Mighty's talented
game development team further strengthens our game development presence in
Melbourne and follows the recent acquisitions of Tantalus and Wicked Witch in
Australia.  We are really looking forward to supporting Mighty's team and
growth as part of the Group."

 

Matt Ditton and Ben Britten-Smith of Mighty Games, commented:

 

"We are really excited to join Keywords Studios, an industry leading, fast
growing business with a global footprint. Ben and I are looking forward to
delivering strong growth with the support of Keywords and helping to offer
technology enabled Build and Test solutions to its global client base.  We
see it as a strong cultural fit and we look forward to working closely with
the wider Keywords' group to drive the combined business forward."

 

For further information, please contact:

 Keywords Studios (www.keywordsstudios.com (http://www.keywordsstudios.com/) )   +353 190 22 730

 Bertrand Bodson, Chief Executive Officer

 Jon Hauck, Chief Financial Officer

 Numis Securities                                                                +44 20 7260 1000

 Stuart Skinner/Kevin Cruickshank/Will Baunton

 MHP Communications (Financial PR)                                               +44 20 3128 8193

 Katie Hunt/Eleni Menikou/Charles Hirst                                          keywords@mhpc.com (mailto:keywords@mhpc.com)

 

About Keywords Studios (www.keywordsstudios.com
(http://www.keywordsstudios.com/) )

Keywords Studios is an international technical services provider to the global
video games industry. Established in 1998, and now with over 70 facilities in
24 countries strategically located in Asia, Australia, the Americas and
Europe, it provides integrated art creation, marketing services, game
development, testing, localization, audio and player support services across
more than 50 languages and 16 games platforms to a blue-chip client base of
over 950 clients across the globe.

Keywords Studios has a strong market position, providing services to 23 of the
top 25 most prominent games companies. Across the games and entertainment
industry, clients include Activision Blizzard, Bandai Namco, Bethesda,
Electronic Arts, Epic Games, Konami, Microsoft, Netflix, Riot Games, Square
Enix, Supercell, TakeTwo, Tencent and Ubisoft. Recent titles worked on include
Anthem, Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, Valorant, League of Legends, Fortnite,
Clash Royale and Doom Eternal. Keywords Studios is listed on AIM, the London
Stock Exchange regulated market (KWS.L).

 

About Mighty Games (www.mightygamesgroup.com
(http://www.mightygamesgroup.com) )

Mighty Games' experienced team focuses on developing tech based AI led
solutions for the video game industry. The studio has developed a platform of
scalable artificial intelligence driven, automated, build and testing tools
optimized for game development pipelines. Mighty is currently running
thousands of hours of automated testing per day on client titles that run the
gamut of mobile games, console titles, multiplayer and crossplay games across
a variety of genres.

 

 

 

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