Zynga Lands $180 Million Investment for Social Games

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on December 16, 2009 - 8:38am.

San Francisco - Zynga, a publisher of social games including "Mafia Wars" and "FarmVille," announced on Wednesday that it has received an investment of $180 million, led by Russia's Digital Sky Technologies. Founded in 2007, San Francisco-based Zynga counts over 230 million monthly active users for its games, which reside on Facebook and other sites. The company says more than a million of its users purchase virtual goods within its games, generating 90% of Zynga's revenue.

While DST comprised the majority of the investment, other participants included new investors Andreessen Horowitz and Tiger Global, along with previous backer Institutional Venture Partners.

The company will use a portion of the funds to fuel growth, with the rest going towards facilitating liquidity for employees and investors.

"Social games are enabling millions of people around the world to connect and play together everyday. We are excited about our relationship with DST as they are a global player dedicated to creating services that are meaningful to consumers in the long term," said Zynga founder and CEO Mark Pincus.

DST is also a major investor in Facebook.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/16/technology/internet/16game.html

http://www.dst-global.com

http://www.zynga.com