Zynga will release five licensed mobile games through 2020, including Star Wars, Game of Thrones and Harry Potter, with plans to leverage the platforms that power its existing titles, CEO Frank Gibeau said in releasing Q3 earnings.

The game developer, best known for ‘Words With Friends”, and “FarmVille”, plans to release games based on Game of Thrones and Harry Potter in second half 2019, with a Star Wars-licensed title due the following year. It will develop two Game of Thrones titles and has an option for a second Star Wars game.

The Harry Potter title will be a tile matching game. The Game of Thrones title will be a social slots title using the Zynga Poker platform.

“I think these new titles will bring in new players as well as get existing players to potentially try one more Zynga title,” Gibeau said. “There is room for a few strategic licenses and I don’t see a dramatic need for more licensed IP (outside the new titles) right now.”

The licensed games will have lower gross margins than Zynga’s owned IP, owing to royalties, Gibeau said. But “given the scale that these brands can attract in terms of audience, we believe the return on investment is still very good,” Gibeau said.

Zynga’s revenue rose four percent to $233.2 million in Q3 ended Sept. 30, including a nine percent increase in mobile to $212.5 million. Despite the revenue increase, net income declined 43.5% to $10.2 millio, as recognition of revenue deferred from previous quarters came in well below forecasts.

Contact:

Zynga, Frank Gibeau, CEO, 855-449-9642, fgibeau@zynga.com

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