About Playphone
Playphone is a Media & Entertainment company based in San Mateo (United States) founded in 2003, and was acquired by GungHo Online Entertainment in October 2014. It operates as a mobile gaming platform for social games on Android devices. Playphone has raised $125.85 million across 4 funding rounds from investors including GungHo Online Entertainment, Cardinal Venture Capital and Menlo Ventures. The company has 4 employees. Its focus areas include Mobile, Mobile Gaming, Gaming Platforms and Distribution. Its competitors include DeNA, Antstream, Kunlun, Kuuhubb and Storms and 4 more; 5 of its 9 listed competitors have raised funding.
Company details
Founded in 2003 in San Mateo, United States, PlayPhone operates as a mobile gaming platform in the social games sector. Android phones are preloaded with the platform through carrier agreements. Gamers are enabled to discover and engage with freemium and paid titles. Developers are supplied with tools for game launches and revenue generation. A 70 stake was acquired by Gungho Online Entertainment in October 2014.
- Headquarters San Mateo, United States
- Employees 4
- Stage Acquired
- SectorsMedia & Entertainment
- Website playphone.com
- Social LinkedIn X Facebook
- Acquired by GungHo Online Entertainment (Oct 2014)
- Total Equity Funding$125.85M (USD)
in 4 rounds
- Latest Funding Round$30.75M (USD), Series C
Mar 2012
- InvestorsGungHo Online Entertainment
& 4 more
- Employee Count4
- Acquired byGungHo Online Entertainment
(Oct 2014)
Funding Insights of Playphone
Playphone has successfully raised a total of $125.85M across 4 strategic funding rounds. The most recent funding activity was a Series C round of $30.75 million completed in March 2012. This substantial capital infusion reflects strong investor confidence in the company's business model, growth potential, and market opportunities. The funding enables strategic expansion, product development, market penetration, and operational scaling to drive long-term value creation and competitive advantage.
- Total Funding $125.85M
- Total Rounds 4
- Last Round Series C — $30.75M
- First Round $9.1M
(Aug 2006)
- Investors Count 4
All 4 funding rounds of Playphone with amounts and investors; the two latest post-money valuations are shown, the rest are part of the premium plan.
| Date | Amount | Transaction Name | Valuation | Lead Investors | Investors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 2012 | $30.75M | Series C | – | – | – |
| Jan 2012 | $67.25M | Series C | – | Cardinal Venture Capital, Menlo Ventures | – |
| May 2007 | $18.75M | Series C | – | – | |
| Aug 2006 | $9.1M | Series B | – | – |
5 investors in total: 5 institutional.
Investors in Playphone
Playphone has secured backing from 5 investors, including venture fund and institutional investors. Prominent investors backing the company include GungHo Online Entertainment, Cardinal Venture Capital and Menlo Ventures.
| Investor | Description | Founded Year | Domain | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
US focused VC firm | – | cardinalvc.com | Menlo Park, United States | |
Early-stage venture capital firm investing in AI, healthcare, and tech sectors. | – | menlovc.com | - | |
Early-stage venture capital investments are focused on US companies. | – | scalevp.com | Foster City, United States | |
- | – | coralcm.com | - | |
Video game developer and publisher | 1998 | gungho.co.jp | Tokyo, Japan |
Investor details for Playphone
The complete investor list, round-by-round participation and investor portfolios require an active premium plan.
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People of Playphone
1 people are tracked at Playphone (1 in leadership); the tracked headcount is 4.
| Name | Role | Group |
|---|---|---|
Darryl Williams | VP of Content | Leadership |
Complete people profiles for Playphone
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Timeline of Playphone
4 dated milestones of Playphone across 11 years, from founding to its latest funding, stage changes and deals.
- Founded Playphone is founded.
- Funding First funding round of $9.1M.
- Funding Latest funding round, Series C, of $30.8M.
- Exit Acquired by GungHo Online Entertainment.
Competitors of Playphone
Playphone has 9 listed competitors in our database, 5 of them funded. They include DeNA, Antstream, Kunlun, Kuuhubb and Storms, among others.
| Company Name | Domain | Founded | HQ Location | Total funding | Employees | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| dena.com | 1999 | Shibuya, Japan | – | – | Mobile social games and services are developed and operated globally. | |
| antstream.com | 2013 | London, United Kingdom | $3.5M | 30 | Mobile cloud gaming platform for streaming games without downloads. | |
| kunlun.com | 2008 | Beijing, China | $8.12M | – | Online games are developed and distributed by Kunlun. | |
| kuuhubb.com | 2016 | Helsinki, Finland | – | – | Mobile games and apps distribution platform | |
| storms.com | 2019 | Singapore | – | – | Mobile gaming platform | |
| xtremeslots.com | 2013 | New York, United States | – | 7 | Mobile platform for casino slot games and bonuses is operated. | |
| wildtangent.com | 1998 | Bellevue, United States | $80.5M | 31 | Gaming platforms for mobile and web devices are provided. | |
| eontoken.io | 2017 | Singapore | $5M | – | A decentralized platform for game distribution and development is provided. | |
| gamesplanet.com | 2001 | Paris, France | $7.09M | – | Online games are distributed via subscription model by Gamesplanet. |
Detailed competitors of Playphone
The full competitor set, operating metrics and side-by-side benchmarks require an active premium plan.
- Full competitor set
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Web traffic of Playphone
Websites that share an audience with Playphone (playphone.com).
Websites whose visitors overlap most with Playphone. Affinity shows how closely the audiences match.
| Website | Domain | Audience affinity | Monthly visits | Global rank | Profile |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
play.google.com | play.google.com | 100% | – | – | – |
| jamster.com | 86% | 6.1K | #2,495,750 | View details | |
mobile17.com | mobile17.com | 84% | – | – | – |
4info.net | 4info.net | 83% | – | – | – |
| thumbplay.com | 59% | – | – | View details | |
| •••••••••• | ••••••.com | ••% | •.•M | #••••• | – |
| •••••••••• | ••••••.com | ••% | •.•M | #••••• | – |
| •••••••••• | ••••••.com | ••% | •.•M | #••••• | – |
All 17 similar websites and full traffic analytics for Playphone
The complete similar-websites list, audience overlap and engagement analytics require an active premium plan.
- 17 similar websites
- Audience overlap
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Top companies in MMORPG & Online Gaming
10 companies that operate in the same segment as Playphone (MMORPG & Online Gaming), ranked by their profile score on The Company Check.
| Company | Description | Founded | Location | Total funding | Revenue | Employees |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Casual games developer and publisher for mobile and web platforms | 2007 | San Francisco, California, United States | USD 525.6 M | USD 49.68 M | 2,916 | |
Developer of mobile-based casual video games | 2017 | London, England, United Kingdom | USD 202 M | USD 364.91 M | 609 | |
Operator of a platform providing skill-based games and interactive entertainment | 2018 | Delhi, Delhi, India | USD 92 M | USD 83.05 M | 1 | |
Provider of cross-platform game engine technology | 1991 | Cary, North Carolina, United States | USD 8.13 B | – | 11,961 | |
Mobile games are developed and published by Jam City. | 2007 | Culver City, California, United States | USD 499.49 M | – | – | |
Operator of a multifaceted platform for sports content and experiences | 2008 | Mumbai, Maharashtra, India | USD 942.17 M | USD 509.95 K | 1,310 | |
Mobile social games and services are developed and operated globally. | 1999 | Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan | – | USD 926.03 M | 2,570 | |
Skill-based online games are provided through a technology-driven platform. | 2006 | Mumbai, Maharashtra, India | USD 98.07 M | USD 264.51 M | 777 | |
Diversified gaming and sports media platforms are operated and developed. | 1999 | Mumbai, Maharashtra, India | USD 127.93 M | USD 194.94 M | 63 | |
Casino games are developed for mobile and web platforms. | 2011 | Burlingame, California, United States | USD 36.17 M | USD 235.1 M | 568 |
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Related news about Playphone
Complete news archive for Playphone
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Frequently Asked Questions about Playphone
Playphone was founded in 2003 and raised its 1st funding round 3 years after it was founded.
Playphone is headquartered in San Mateo, United States. It is registered at San Mateo, California, United States.
Playphone is a funded company, having raised a total of $125.85M across 4 funding rounds to date. The company's 1st funding round was a Series B of $9.1M, raised on Aug 2006.
Playphone has 4 employees.
Founded in 2003 in San Mateo, United States, PlayPhone operates as a mobile gaming platform in the social games sector. Android phones are preloaded with the platform through carrier agreements. Gamers are enabled to discover and engage with freemium and paid titles. Developers are supplied with tools for game launches and revenue generation. A 70 stake was acquired by Gungho Online Entertainment in October 2014.
Playphone has 5 investors. Key investors include GungHo Online Entertainment, Cardinal Venture Capital, Menlo Ventures, Scale Venture Partners, and Coral Capital Management.
Yes. Playphone was acquired by GungHo Online Entertainment in October 2014.