Saudi company buys ‘Pokémon Go’ developer Niantic

The video game developer behind Pokémon Go has found a new owner.

Niantic, Inc., formerly Niantic Labs, has announced that it is selling its video game division to Scopely, a Saudi Arabia-owned mobile game developer.

According to The Verge, the acquisition is worth $3.5 billion and is subject to regulatory approval.

Niantic, Inc. was founded in 2010 by American entrepreneur John Hanke as an internal startup within Google and is headquartered in San Francisco, California.

The developer broke away from Google in 2015 after the search giant’s announcement of its restructuring as Alphabet Inc.

“Niantic games have always been a bridge to connect people and inspire exploration, and I am confident they will continue to do both as part of Scopely,” Hanke said in a statement.

“Scopely shares our focus on building and operating incredible live services, has exceptional experience working with the world’s biggest and most beloved intellectual properties, and cares deeply about its player communities and game-making teams,” the CEO continued.

Niantic is most famous for developing 2016’s augmented reality mobile game Pokémon Go. The game enjoyed great success in its first few years with more than half a billion players in its first year.

However, Pokémon Go experienced a steady decline in popularity during the pandemic lockdowns in 2020.

Scopely was founded in 2011 in Los Angeles. In 2023, it was acquired by Savvy Games Group, a multinational video game development and publishing company based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.