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Cave accelerates social smartphone business; signs strategic partnership with GREE

Gains $2.3 million investment too

Cave accelerates social smartphone business; signs strategic partnership with GREE
Best known in the west for its bullet hell shooters, Japanese publisher Cave is now looking towards social mobile games for future growth.

It's just signed a deal with ambitious Japanese mobile company GREE to support its platform globally, both in terms of its current feature phone audience and the fast growing smartphone sector.

The deal sees the companies forming what they call "a capital and business alliance".

This will result in Cave allocating 1,178 new shares to GREE, which will pay it ¥176.5 million ($2.3 million).

Come together

Cave explains the deal saying social media games are now its "flagship operation", and it needs to "assertively invest" in the smarphone market at a faster pace and "form tight alliances with platform management companies".

In terms of the GREE deal, both companies will work closely together over collaborative game development for feature and smartphones.

Cave will also roll out its existing smartphone games such as Dodonpachi Resurrection to GREE's platform. During 2011, it plans to release a total of nine games on GREE.
Contributing Editor

A Pocket Gamer co-founder, Jon is Contributing Editor at PG.biz which means he acts like a slightly confused uncle who's forgotten where he's left his glasses. As well as letters and cameras, he likes imaginary numbers and legumes.