Cross-platform gaming company Arkadium raises $5M

The company raises its first round after 12 years of organic growth

After 12 years of bootstrapped growth, cross-platform gaming company Arkadium announced Thursday that it has raised $5 million in Series A funding from Edison Ventures. The company has not only seen organic growth over the last 12 years without ever raising money—it’s also profitable. So why raise money now? The company, which has partnered with Microsoft and developed a number of titles for Windows 8, says it plans to ramp up development of new titles and expand its proprietary distribution network. The company also expects to double its staff over the next three years.

Headquartered in New York City with offices in Canada and Ukraine, the company has earned itself a spot as a comScore Top 20 game distributor with its Arena product, a white-label solution that makes it possible to integrate casual games into any Web or mobile property. Arkadium games are played across Facebook, Windows 8, the Web, and other mobile devices. Some 10 million users worldwide play Arkadium’s games each month, including titles like Taptiles, Sparks, Trizzle, and Mahjongg Dimensions, among others.

“Since Arkadium’s inception in 2001, our approach to responsible, managed growth has allowed us to maintain our position as a steadfast and profitable game development studio. Through market and industry volatility we’ve gotten closer to our goal of becoming the top casual game studio in the world,” said Jessica Rovello, president of Arkadium, in a statement.

The husband/wife team of Jessica Rovello and CEO Kenny Rosenblatt has made a big bet on the Windows 8 platform. A number of their top titles are exclusively available on Windows 8.

Over the last 12 years, Rovello and Rosenblatt have taken the startup from a handful of titles and team members to more than 35 titles and 150 employees worldwide. Meanwhile, they’ve also been busy with their own family of five, including three boys ages five, four, and five months. I am impressed and inspired.

“It’s rare to find a high-growth technology company that’s been able to achieve the success Arkadium has without the benefit of ever raising capital,” said Ryan Ziegler of Edison Ventures, in a statement.  “Arkadium’s cross-platform capabilities and unified infrastructure enable the efficient production of best in class gaming content.  We are excited to partner with an emerging market leader.  The demand and market opportunities for innovative content and enhanced user experiences are endless.”