Funzio Sold for $210mm

[Fredo]

http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-57425681-93/gree-acquires-game-maker-funzio-for-$210m/

This is why they haven't cared much about solving problems.

[Boom]

Saw it too!!!

[Boom]

So what's gonna happen now???

[ICEMAN0023]

http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-57425681-93/gree-acquires-game-maker-funzio-for-$210m/

This is why they haven't cared much about solving problems.

Maybe some people are more concerned about having a job rather than trying to find out who is exploiting in game cash.

The grass is not always greener on the other side remember that.

[Yahkin]

Grats Funzio. That is a nice sum of money. Free gold for everyone!!! lol

[erik]

Great news guys, congratulations.

CCMark, I hope you can still type zingers with all your new finger bling.

[Dravak]

So what's gonna happen now???

Simple the game is going to expand , and the target group will be the casual players , not the cheaters and exploiters.

So expect simply put more the same , expanded farm ville style .

So lets hope they can keep the customer support intact .

[Rodimus]

The Company name that bought Funzio is GREE. I would strongly suggest a name change but that's just me.

[Boom]

Okay Dravak... :P

[Gaming Will]

So who do we make the "check" out to now?

[Dravak]

Who do we pay Funzio , even if it is owned by Gree , the top might change , it is still funzio .
So basically nothing change for majority of people , it just that top you never saw .
Going to expand the horizon of the game to get there investment back , how they do it I can only speculate .

Either way customers should be happy cause they just going give what the casual group in game , and minority on the forum want .
A more even controlled playfield , with tip of the scale balanced to goldselling like it always has been .

[Populouspapa]

Thats the guys that bought open feint. I hope theyll focus on fixing all client/ server issues..

[xclusiv]

things are changing all the time...

[Boom]

I hope this is something good..........

[Murda]

From the press release.......

Funzio – creator of successful titles “Crime City,” “Modern War,” and “Kingdom Age” – boasts over 20 million game downloads and possesses a strong, passionate fan base

They're talking about you, ranters, over-analyzers, emotional robbers, serial attackers, cheaters, 499'ers, rat-catchers, spreadsheet designers, stat-braggers, gold buyers, event chasers, 59 minute nappers, no income hood'ers, tree camo'ers, wall-spammers, mafia collectors, event extender-ers.

Congrats!!

[G Wiz]

If anything should change it would be increased service...

New reputations on the line...something to prove. However, like someone already said, this doesn't mean that Funzio will change at all.

[Crime City Mark]

We're still pretty much the same. You'll be seeing a lot of the same faces, and the games are only going to be improved. Support is going to improve a lot as well.

[Steve0]

There doing something right.

[Steve0]

CCM and gang are you guys getting a raise? If not you should.

[Dravak]

We're still pretty much the same. You'll be seeing a lot of the same faces, and the games are only going to be improved. Support is going to improve a lot as well.


Mark maintain the customer support level , then you got a winner .
Doesn't matter what people say , it is one of the mostly overlooked issue in gaming industry .
If it wasn't for the strong support , this game would have sunk long time ago ;)

[G Wiz]

Mark maintain the customer support level , then you got a winner .
Doesn't matter what people say , it is one of the mostly overlooked issue in gaming industry .
If it wasn't for the strong support , this game would have sunk long time ago ;)Thought it was gold purchasing...lol

[Crime City Mark]

Mark maintain the customer support level , then you got a winner .
Doesn't matter what people say , it is one of the mostly overlooked issue in gaming industry .
If it wasn't for the strong support , this game would have sunk long time ago ;)

Thanks. I mostly meant that we'll be bringing on more staff and developing better tools to keep our turnarounds low and our support top-notch. Before Kingdom Age launched we had a ~12 hour turnaround on tickets, which was the best in the industry. I want to get us back to that point.

[jinqs]

$210m? I wonder what the ROI on that upgrade is. :)

[schnuffler]

Congrats to the founders, owners and shareholders of Funzio

[Dreno33]

$210m? I wonder what the ROI on that upgrade is. :)

LOL. made me laugh on that one haha

[Feng1234]

Nice. Hope some innovative ideas gets moved across to this game. I'd like to see more changes in the game to make it more worthwhile to spend gold. I want to contribute but what I get in return at the moment in terms of entertainment just doesn't justify the cost.

Either way congrats and enjoy new found wealth! Keep up the support and active forum because it's key to why this game is still entertaining!

[nvbealone]

Thanks. I mostly meant that we'll be bringing on more staff and developing better tools to keep our turnarounds low and our support top-notch. Before Kingdom Age launched we had a ~12 hour turnaround on tickets, which was the best in the industry. I want to get us back to that point.

awesome! but i am still waiting for my ticket (#88351) to be resolved. it has been 6 days now and i havent heard anything back. : (

[Inzaghi]

Wow, Funzio is equal to more than five NCs. Before I build it, I wonder total output and output time to determine its ROI. BTW, is it Type A or B?

[QPR]

Congratulations

[jaywalker]

Maybe some people are more concerned about having a job rather than trying to find out who is exploiting in game cash.

The grass is not always greener on the other side remember that.

They don't make money off the xploiters/ cheater....

[Vicious...]

They don't make money off the xploiters/ cheater....
That and it turns off potential and current customers.

[Plux]

GREE is a fantastic Japanese Corporation, enjoy being funded against Zynga, they had an old agreement with Sega years ago. Well done Funzio, may the investment and growth flow and us gamers have greater support now. GREE is also basing in SF so should make Bloomberg West tonight. Great news! I'd buy equity now!

[Sasha54]

GREE is a fantastic Japanese Corporation, enjoy being funded against Zynga, they had an old agreement with Sega years ago. Well done Funzio, may the investment and growth flow and us gamers have greater support now. GREE is also basing in SF so should make Bloomberg West tonight. Great news! I'd buy equity now!

Why is it fantastic?

[Daniel2115]

Free gold for everyone? Lol

[sez]

Thanks. I mostly meant that we'll be bringing on more staff and developing better tools to keep our turnarounds low and our support top-notch. Before Kingdom Age launched we had a ~12 hour turnaround on tickets, which was the best in the industry. I want to get us back to that point.

I have only opened 1 support ticket for my account, it was during the atm event. I opened it on Thursday and it was resolved Tuesday. I updated the ticket myself threw e-mail multiple times with never getting any kind of response. My company has a helpdesk with over 500 help desk "Analyst's", most of my work day is resolving tickets related to our server environment. Our Service Level Agreement with our client is ALL tickets will be resolved in 48hrs after being opened. I did not even get a response till 5 days later. Just my 1 expierence when I needed help with my account.

[mnju_03]

I have only opened 1 support ticket for my account, it was during the atm event. I opened it on Thursday and it was resolved Tuesday. I updated the ticket myself threw e-mail multiple times with never getting any kind of response. My company has a helpdesk with over 500 help desk "Analyst's", most of my work day is resolving tickets related to our server environment. Our Service Level Agreement with our client is ALL tickets will be resolved in 48hrs after being opened. I did not even get a response till 5 days later. Just my 1 expierence when I needed help with my account.

Want a cookie?

[sez]

Here is my ticket number so you can verify what I said if you wish. 81577

[sez]

Want a cookie?

Nope, just dont agree with 12hr turnaround statement.

[Joe Brown1]

Coookiess . . . . . now I am hungry.

BTW sez - love the avatar - one of my favorite characters of all time. Somehow, my 4 yr old has gotten hold of all the strips and is trying to replicate them:cool:

[sez]

Coookiess . . . . . now I am hungry.

BTW sez - love the avatar - one of my favorite characters of all time. Somehow, my 4 yr old has gotten hold of all the strips and is trying to replicate them:cool:

lol, when I was 16'ish I had a Chevy Blazer, I had the same picture on my back window but he was "doing his buisness" on a Ford symbol. Being here in Metro Detroit it didnt go over to well, also I forgot my neighbor worked for Ford, he always gave me dirty looks for some reason....

[Ghost818]

lol, when I was 16'ish I had a Chevy Blazer, I had the same picture on my back window but he was "doing his buisness" on a Ford symbol. Being here in Metro Detroit it didnt go over to well, also I forgot my neighbor worked for Ford, he always gave me dirty looks for some reason....

My dad had a truck years ago with a beautiful pearlescent paint job. On his rear window he had the same symbol doing his thang on the Ford symbol haha.

[mnju_03]

Well fine, I have cookies and sez doesn't get any....Joe and I can eat them all... Oh look beer. lol

[Max Power]

The Company name that bought Funzio is GREE. I would strongly suggest a name change but that's just me.

Apparently the "D" is silent......LOL!


(I keed, I keed)

[Swearengen]

Maybe they'll give all all FREE GOLD - NOT!

[Crime City Mark]

Nope, just dont agree with 12hr turnaround statement.

1) That was after Kingdom Age launched. Remember, I said "Before Kingdom Age launched we...".

2) The turnaround on your ticket was just over 72hrs, not 5 days.

I know waiting may seem like forever sometimes, but let's not outright lie to people when there are timestamps.

[Gaming Will]

1) That was after Kingdom Age launched. Remember, I said "Before Kingdom Age launched we...".

2) The turnaround on your ticket was just over 72hrs, not 5 days.

I know waiting may seem like forever sometimes, but let's not outright lie to people when there are timestamps.

Speaking of turnaround times makes me think of Six Sigma that we had to go through in Hospital Management. (I'm a Greenbelt). Do you include Saturday and Sunday in your turnaround times or is it just business days?

[Crime City Mark]

We're a 7 day a week company. We have nearly full support staff on weekends, and we're adding more.

[sez]

1) That was after Kingdom Age launched. Remember, I said "Before Kingdom Age launched we...".

2) The turnaround on your ticket was just over 72hrs, not 5 days.

I know waiting may seem like forever sometimes, but let's not outright lie to people when there are timestamps.

outright lie? i'll be happy to post the whole e-mail thread. Also your time stamps are wrong. I opened the ticket at "April 20th 01:56" the timestamp after says "4-20-04:53" this is taken off the e-mail.

I have no desire to lie, dont call me a liar.

The ticket was opened just before 2 a.m Friday (I guess i might have still considered that Thursday) and was resolved at 7 pm Monday. Thats over 82 hrs, "just over 72 hrs" is not accurate. Lets not outright lie to people.

[sez]

1) That was after Kingdom Age launched. Remember, I said "Before Kingdom Age launched we...".

2) The turnaround on your ticket was just over 72hrs, not 5 days.

I know waiting may seem like forever sometimes, but let's not outright lie to people when there are timestamps.

Also in the meantime while I was sooooo impatiently waiting I spent almost 200.00$ USD (do I need to get the recipts and tally the EXACT amount? dont want to be a liar). I was so upset with you and Funzio that I just kept spending money to show how upset I was. Im sure I showed you guys!

[dudeman]

outright lie? i'll be happy to post the whole e-mail thread. Also your time stamps are wrong. I opened the ticket at "April 20th 01:56" the timestamp after says "4-20-04:53" this is taken off the e-mail.

I have no desire to lie, dont call me a liar.

The ticket was opened just before 2 a.m Friday (I guess i might have still considered that Thursday) and was resolved at 7 pm Monday. Thats over 82 hrs, "just over 72 hrs" is not accurate. Lets not outright lie to people.

Funzio operates on their own special clock. Remember the collection timer bug?

:p:cool:

[Crime City Mark]

outright lie? i'll be happy to post the whole e-mail thread. Also your time stamps are wrong. I opened the ticket at "April 20th 01:56" the timestamp after says "4-20-04:53" this is taken off the e-mail.

I have no desire to lie, dont call me a liar.

The ticket was opened just before 2 a.m Friday (I guess i might have still considered that Thursday) and was resolved at 7 pm Monday. Thats over 82 hrs, "just over 72 hrs" is not accurate. Lets not outright lie to people.

So from the morning of the 20th to the afternoon of the 23rd is 5 days for you? Fascinating.

[sez]

So from the morning of the 20th to the afternoon of the 23rd is 5 days for you? Fascinating.

Sure Mark, whatever you say.

[sez]

So from the morning of the 20th to the afternoon of the 23rd is 5 days for you? Fascinating.

trying to insult someone or put them on blast is fascinating, however I don't care what you think about me or my mathematic\calendar skills.

[Crime City Mark]

It's not what I'm saying, it's what you said. "I did not even get a response till 5 days later." Your ticket was opened on the 20th and the first response was the 23rd. Yeah, that was later than it should have been. Your 5 days comment was hyperbolic. Feel free to criticize, but don't make stuff up.

[sez]

So from the morning of the 20th to the afternoon of the 23rd is 5 days for you? Fascinating.

lol, 2:00 am to me is not the morning and 7 pm is deff not the afternoon!!!!

[sez]

It's not what I'm saying, it's what you said. "I did not even get a response till 5 days later." Your ticket was opened on the 20th and the first response was the 23rd. Yeah, that was later than it should have been. Your 5 days comment was hyperbolic. Feel free to criticize, but don't make stuff up.

sounds good, i'll cross check all facts before making any comment, since I can tell thats what everyone here does.

[Chiefer]

Unfortunately nothing is rich and morally just.

[Yahkin]

I've opened 3 tickets in the past. First one was 5 days to respond after a prodding on the forum.(2 months ago) Second one was just over 6 hours and third was 17 hours.

All three were handled to my satisfaction and I'm happy with their support. Frankly for a game where you are not actively interacting with players like an MMO or FPS, 24 hour turnaround is more than sufficient.

[erik]

Sorry Chiefer, but Creme Brulee is in fact morally just.

[schnuffler]

Not too much of a necro for this thread:

Found something interesting in my daily reads:

http://techcrunch.com/2012/05/08/funzio-was-making-5m-in-sales-per-month-when-it-sold-to-gree-for-210m/

[CounterSniper]

Not too much of a necro for this thread:

Found something interesting in my daily reads:

http://techcrunch.com/2012/05/08/funzio-was-making-5m-in-sales-per-month-when-it-sold-to-gree-for-210m/

Good find!

[Dravak]

Doesn't matter people can read up , but can they understand the big picture , it is not a one sided deal .
This take over is the best to happen for consumers .

Sadly doesn't mean it is the best for individuals , but in the greater general , it is best interest of both party .

Now who understand what in business , since we have plenty of smart people around this forum .
Who do have masters and phd ...
And on the other side we have the internet buzzz , that likes to make anything that is a anthill to a giant pile of dung.

So basically there is always two side to a story lol

[dudeman]

Not too much of a necro for this thread:

Found something interesting in my daily reads:

http://techcrunch.com/2012/05/08/funzio-was-making-5m-in-sales-per-month-when-it-sold-to-gree-for-210m/

This part is especially interesting:

"GREE’s*shares were absolutely slaughtered on the Tokyo Stock Exchange on Monday. The company’s shares fell a record 23 percent after the Japanese government said it was investigating the legality of various game mechanics in the social gaming industry. Many Japanese games have a slot machine-like mechanic called “Gacha,” where players will randomly win different special items. If they win all the items, they might get a grand prize. The National Consumer Affairs Agency said it’s now looking at regulating this tactic, which could seriously crimp revenues for GREE."


So that's why we're seeing so many events so close together, they probably won't be legal for much longer!

[jinqs]

So that's why we're seeing so many events so close together, they probably won't be legal for much longer!

... in Japan. The article talks about that being a large part of the reason that GREE started acquiring US companies.

[Dravak]

And what else is new , americans are forbidden from using CC for online casino games ... to protect the guiliable.
Still they do it , just the majority of the companies no longer accept American Credit Cards .
Doesn't mean Americans are not creative enough to find a different way around it ..

Same thing will happen in Japan , nothing new to it , they just going to reshuffle the games .
Stocks already stabilised , so yesterday news is yesterday news .

[sez]

Great read, thx for posting.

[URDead]

As a supporter of the United States and our own economic recovery, I will make sure that I never send a penny into this game again. Thank you for the good times, but I will keep my money in my own country thank you :) I am sure this could have been a great company, at least in the short term, and created some more excellent paying jobs for programmers. Sadly, the profits of this game will be going overseas. Except of course for the founders, who can now relax on their private yachts. Kudos to you guys for making the american dream come true.