888 acquires social games platform

888 Holdings, owner of the popular online casino 888Casino, has announced an agreement to acquire assets from Real Dice Inc. According to the agreement the 888 acquisition will include a games development studio, casino games, a poker application and more.

888 has invested in Real Dice as it seeks to broaden its entertainment options and the Mytopia social games development studio will help the company provide a seamless experience across multiple gaming platforms. Mytopia specialises in developing cross-platform social games for smart phones, mobile phones as well as social networking platforms like Facebook.

888 will also acquire games including “Bingo Island 2” which is a popular bingo application on Facebook as well a social poker application using the “Pacific Poker” brand. Another online poker application that will feature in the games bouquet is a real time multiplayer mobile poker game which is currently available for iPhone, Android, BlackBerry, Windows Mobile and J2ME handsets.

Other acquisitions which are part of the agreement include a platform for hosting and operating real-time social games on social networks and mobile as well as the licence for Particle Code™ which is a cross-platform application development framework for mobile devices and tablets.

This latest acquisition by 888 makes it clear that the company will be increasing its focus on the mobile games arena. Gigi Levy, CEO of 888 Holdings, said, “This is a very exciting deal for 888, and builds on our aim of providing a variety of entertainment destinations where people can enjoy a truly interactive experience on a multitude of platforms.”

“Mytopia is one of the leading publishers of cross-platform social-games and this acquisition gives us an immediate footprint in the fast-growing social gaming arena, complementing our core offering and giving us access to millions of customers,” he said.

Guy Ben-Artzi, CEO of Real Dice, said, “888 understands where the market is going. Mytopia will thrive with 888’s infrastructure and expertise behind it and bring to 888 new revenue streams from virtual goods and microtransactions on social networks and mobile devices.”

Written by Debbie Hall for Online Keno – read about the latest developments in the world of online casino games.