In what could be construed as a harbinger of an IPO, casual gaming giant Zynga has reportedly tapped up the COO of Electronic Arts John Schappert to head up its game division.
A regulatory filing released by EA indicated that Schappert had resigned from his role at the Redwood City, California-based company on Monday.
Taking it to next level
Once formally installed at the home of FarmVille and CityVille, Schappert will join a number of former EA employees, including ex-game studio executive Steve Chiang and ex-game designer Mark Skaggs.
Zynga has been busy strengthening its position in the social gaming sphere of late, purchasing 11 studios in as many months, yet this particular acquisition albeit of a personnel variety could prove the most pivotal for the Mafia Wars creator.
According to Wedbush Securities gaming research analyst Michael Pachter, "if Zynga is serious about going public, they need someone who knows how to do it. They just grabbed a guy to give them what they were missing - public management experience."
During his 22-month tenure at EA, Schappert oversaw not only the firms attempts to drive significant revenue in the digital and mobile space, but also its pursuit of a major social gaming presence on Facebook.
Something Zynga knows ALL about.
[source: Reuters]
News
With a degree in German up his sleeve Richard squares up to the following three questions every morning: FIFA or Pro Evo? XBox 360 or PS3? McNulty or Bunk?
Related Articles
News
Feb 13th, 2024
Mobile revenue exceeds Take-Two’s expectations, making over $2 billion in nine months
Top Stories
Feature
May 17th, 2024
New release roundup: The best new mobile games from a battle royale to a console classic remake
Feature
May 16th, 2024
Behind the scenes: How adding sandwich offers to an idle merge game boosted three metrics at once
Events
Digital Dragons | Europe | May 19th |
GamesBeat Summit 2024 | North America | May 20th |
Mobidictum Meetup Tallinn May 2024 | Europe | May 21st |
Nordic Game Spring 2024 | Nordic | May 21st |
Impact 2024 - Indie Games | May 23rd | |
Morocco Gaming Expo | Africa | May 24th |
MomoCon 2024 | North America | May 24th |
Unreal Fest Gold Coast 2024 | Australasia | May 29th |
Popular Stories
Feature
May 14th, 2024
53 top mobile games in soft launch: Squad Busters, Battle Guys: Royale, Plants vs. Zombies 3, LEGO Hill Climb Adventures, and more
Feature
May 13th, 2024
Hot Five: Dubai's new Gaming Visa, April's mobile game charts, and Xbox studio closures
Interview
May 13th, 2024