Zynga have announced the acquisition of Israeli mobile growth and app store optimisation (ASO) platform Storemaven for an undisclosed amount. This marks the first acquisition by the company since it was taken over by Take-Two earlier this year.

This acquisition sees Zynga expanding operations into the region. The Storemaven team will combine its A/B testing capabilities and optimisation methods with Zynga’s global portfolio, as well as Chartboosts’s advertising platform.

Storemaven claims that it has revolutionised the way that category-leading mobile companies and game developers optimise their creatives, conduct growth experiments, and measure performance. Zynga uses to utilise this acquisition to enhance its usage and investment in growth technologies, augment its position as an industry leader, and further its mission to connect the world through gaming.

“Zynga has always invested in publishing technology, experimentation, and analytics that connect players to the fun and engaging experiences that we create,'' said Zynga executive vice president and chief data officer Alex Tremblay.

“With our acquisition of Storemaven, we gain additional, unmatched technologies and expertise to expand Zynga’s publishing platform and to solidify our leading position in the marketplace. Storemaven brings world-class optimization and intelligence technologies that are crucial to the success of publishing mobile games. We are excited to officially welcome this talented team to the Zynga family.”

A fast-growing market

Expanding into Israel could prove key for Zynga, as the country has proven to be one of the fastest growing gaming hubs in the world, with mobile gaming in particular being a dominant space in the market. We reported in July that, on any given day, two of the top ten games in the mobile charts were created by Israeli developers.

However, the country has no AAA studios – although mobile gaming remains the most dominant platform, AAA games such as The Last of Us Part II or Final Fantasy VII Remake tend to dominate the public consciousness, so the establishment of such studios could help cement the country’s emerging presence in the games space. As it stands, however, Israel’s place within the mobile gaming industry is indisputable.

“Zynga’s rich culture in data-driven decision making and innovation, expansive reach, and enormous ambitions have made them an important partner for us,” said Storemaven CEO Gad Maor. “This combination allows us to maximize the impact of our expertise and products. We look forward to combining our technologies and unique culture with Zynga’s massive portfolio and Chartboost’s advertising platform, opening the door to building a world-class publishing platform that will launch global hits at scale".

Zynga’s acquisition by Take-Two came at a $12.7 billion valuation, making it the second largest video game acquisition of all time. Last month, we listed Take-Two as one of the world’s top 50 mobile game makers.