FriendTimes Valuation Multiples

Tencent is the world’s largest game publisher, with top-grossing mobile hits like Honor of Kings and Peacekeeper Elite and a steady pipeline of new titles. It also operates WeChat—China’s super-app with roughly 1.3 billion users—embedded in daily life for messaging, short video, mini programs, payments, and shopping. Beyond its own platforms, Tencent is a prolific strategic investor, holding stakes in leading internet companies such as PDD, Kuaishou, and Xiaohongshu.

Founded in the late 1990s as an internet portal, NetEase has evolved into China’s second-largest online gaming company. Its early success was anchored by the massively multiplayer online role-playing game Fantasy Westward Journey, which laid the foundation for a durable franchise strategy. Over the past decade, the company has expanded its portfolio with successful titles such as Justice, Identity V, Naraka: Bladepoint, and Eggy Party, all of which continue to maintain sizable and engaged player bases.In addition to its in-house development capabilities, NetEase partners with global IP holders such as Microsoft and Marvel to develop and publish titles based on established franchises, including World of Warcraft, Diablo Immortal, and Marvel Rivals, further strengthening its global presence.

Sea started as a gaming business, Garena, but in 2015 expanded into e-commerce. Sea operates Southeast Asia's largest e-commerce company, Shopee, in terms of gross merchandise value. Shopee is a hybrid consumer-to-consumer and business-to-consumer marketplace platform operating in Indonesia, Taiwan, Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Brazil. For Garena, Free Fire is the key revenue-generating game. Sea’s third business, Monee, provides lending, payment, digital banking, and insurance services. As of March 2025, Forrest Li, the founder, chair, and CEO, owned 59.1% of the voting power. Tencent owned 18.5% of issued shares with no voting power.

Roblox operates a free-to-play online video game platform with nearly 125 million daily active users. This platform has spawned a virtual universe and a Roblox economy based on the Robux currency. The platform houses millions of games from a wide range of creators—spanning from young gamers themselves to professional development studios. Roblox offers creators the tools, publishing abilities, and platform for their games, enabling anyone to create a game. Creators earn money when gamers make optional in-game purchases within their games and by offering space for real-world advertising, and Roblox earns revenue primarily by taking a cut of these earnings.

Konami is a Japanese video game and entertainment company best known for its eFootball, Yu-Gi-Oh!, Powerful Pro Baseball, and Metal Gear franchises. It operates four business divisions—digital entertainment, amusement, gaming and systems, and sports. Overseas sales account for the majority of the company’s revenue.

Nexon is a South Korean online game developer and publisher, founded in 1994 in Korea by Kim Jung-ju. In 2005, the company moved its headquarters to Tokyo, Japan, and has operations in Korea, the US, Taiwan, and Thailand. The company’s most notable franchises are MapleStory, Dungeon & Fighter, Sudden Attack, and KartRider. Nexon has been the publisher for EA’s FC Online game franchise in Korea and Japan since 2013. Nexon acquired an independent game developer, Embark Studios AB, located in Stockholm, Sweden, in 2019.

Kunlun Tech Co Ltd engages in the development and distribution of online games in China. It also operates software application stores. The company develops and distributes web games, social games, mobile games, and software applications. Geographically, the company distributes its products in domestic and overseas markets.

International Games System Co Ltd plans, designs, researches, develops, manufactures, markets, and services commercial electronic arcade games, related software and hardware products, online games and mobile games. It offers arcade game, online game, mobile game, simulator machine games and online games. All the business activity is operated through Taiwan. There are two segments namely: Arcade game division, which derives maximum revenue and Online game division.

Square Enix is a Japanese video game publisher and entertainment company that was formed in 2003 through the merger between Square and Enix. The company is best known for its role-playing game franchises such as Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, Kingdom Hearts, and Nier. The company also operates publishing, merchandise, and amusement businesses.

Krafton Inc is a South Korea-based game developer and publisher engaged in creating and distributing PC, mobile, and console games. Its activities also extend to game software services, mobile app development, video content production, and related investment and consulting work. The company manages multiple studios, including PUBG Studio, Bluehole, RisingWings, Striking Distance Studios, Dreamotion, and Unknown Worlds, and is known for titles such as PUBG: Battlegrounds, New State Mobile, BGMI, Defense Derby, The Callisto Protocol, Ronin: The Last Samurai, Road to Valor, Moonbreaker, and Subnautica.

Giant Network Group Co Ltd is engaged in Internet culture and entertainment business, research and development and operation of Internet games, and other Internet business.

Bilibili is a Chinese online entertainment platform best known for its YouTube-like video-sharing service. Founded in 2009, it initially focused on long-form content centered around anime, comics, and gaming, or ACG, catering primarily to Generation Z users. Over time, the platform has expanded its content ecosystem to cover a broader range of interests, successfully attracting a more diverse audience beyond its original Gen Z base.

37 Interactive Entertainment Network Technology Group Co Ltd is involved in the interactive entertainment business, mainly focused on the research, development, publishing, and operation of mobile games and browser games, while arranging the pan-entertainment business, including film and TV, animation, and music. Its operating segments include the Mobile Gaming business and the Web Game business.

Kingnet Network Co Ltd is a Chinese-based online game company. The company's main business covers research and development as well as the operation and publishing of quality entertainment content, including mobile games, web games, and PC games. It also engages in the operation of web game platforms and mobile app distribution platforms.

Kingsoft Corp Ltd is a Chinese software and Internet services company. The company's operating segment includes entertainment software and others and office software and services. It generates maximum revenue from the entertainment software and others segment. The entertainment software and others segment is engaged in the research and development of games, and the provision of online games, mobile games and casual game services. Geographically, it derives a majority of revenue from Mainland China, and also has its presence in Hong Kong, and Other Countries.

JOYY Inc is a technology company. The Company operates several social products, including Bigo Live for live streaming, Likee for short-form videos, Hago for multiplayer social networking, an instant messaging product, and others. The Company operates through two segments: BIGO and All other. The BIGO segment consists of several social entertainment platforms, including Bigo Live, Likee, imo, and others. The All other segment consist of Hago, Shopline, and certain audio live streaming platforms.

Talkweb Information System Co Ltd is a provider of software and hardware integrated products and solutions in China. It offers software cloud services, intelligent computing, Hongmeng ecology, and mobile games. The company provides services to approx. 31 provincial-level administrative regions across the country and more than 10 overseas countries. It focuses on key areas and industries such as digital government, intelligent manufacturing, intelligent transportation, intelligent education, and intelligent parks.

G-bits Network Technology (Xiamen) Co Ltd develops video games and other multiplayer online games. It offers client, Web, mobile, and VR games. Geographically, it operates through the region of China.

Koei Tecmo Holdings is a Japanese video game, amusement, and anime company created in 2009 by the merger of Koei and Tecmo, best known for their Nobunaga’s Ambition, Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Nioh, and Atelier game franchises. The company also creates games based on third-party franchises, such as Nintendo’s The Legend of Zelda and Fire Emblem, and Kodansha’s Attack on Titan.

NC Corp is a South Korean video-game developer and publisher. Its games include Lineage, Blade & Soul and Guild Wars.

XD Inc is an investment holding company. It is principally engaged in the development, operation, publishing and distribution of mobile and web games and operation of TapTap, a game community and platform. Its operating segments are game segment, offers game publishing and operating services on its own and via other Distribution Channels. Revenues from the game segment are mainly derived from game publishing and operating services. The TapTap platform segment offers online marketing services to game developers, game publishers, or their agents through the group's self-developed primary game community and platform. It generates majority of revenue from Game segment. Geographically majority of revenue comes from Chinese mainland.

Netmarble Corp is an online gaming company in South Korea. Its core business include game development and game publishing throughout the world. Some of its games include Tera M, FishingStrike, Raven, Seven Knights, among others.

Alpha Group (Alpha Group Co., Ltd., 奥飞娱乐) is a Chinese animation, toy and entertainment company listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange since September 2009 under code 002292. It was founded in December 1993 by Cai Dongqing as Auldey Toys and later traded as Guangdong Alpha Animation and Culture before adopting its current name in 2016; its headquarters is in the Chenghai district of Shantou, Guangdong. The company creates and licenses animated IP, producing animated films and television series and distributing them through its media businesses, and it designs, manufactures and sells toys and building-block sets linked to its characters. Subsidiaries include Auldey Toys, Creative Power Entertaining, Alpha Pictures and Korea's David Toys and Entertainment and it has developed video games. Revenue comes from toy sales, IP licensing and content distribution. Cai Dongqing is chairman and general manager.

Embracer Group AB is a parent company of businesses led by entrepreneurs in PC, console, mobile, and board games and other related media. The Group has an extensive catalog of several owned or controlled franchises and has a presence in various regions through its operative groups, namely THQ Nordic, Plaion, Coffee Stain, Amplifier Game Invest, and others. Its operating segments are: PC/Console Games, Mobile Games, and Entertainment & Services. Maximum revenue is derived from the Entertainment & Services segment, which is engaged in the development, publishing, and distribution of comic books, wholesale of publishing titles of games for console and PC, as well as films, and externally distributes films and TV series. Geographically, the Group generates maximum revenue from the USA.

Nazara Technologies Ltd is a mobile game company in India. The company has offerings across the interactive gaming, eSports, ad-tech, and gamified early learning ecosystems including World Cricket Championship (WCC) and CarromClash in mobile games, Kiddopia in gamified early learning, Nodwin, PublishMe and Sportskeeda in eSports and eSports media, OpenPlay, Halaplay and Qunami in skill-based, fantasy and trivia games, and Datawrkz in digital ad tech. The company's segment includes Gaming; eSports; and Ad tech. It generates maximum revenue from the eSports segment. Geographically, it derives a majority of its revenue from the USA.

Yoozoo Interactive Co Ltd is a game-based interactive entertainment company. The company implements the strategies of big data, globalization, and quality products to achieve integrated development across four major areas namely globalized game research and development and publishing, IP management, big data and intelligent technology, and pan-entertainment industry investment. It operates using a 'film-game integration' model to deliver a series of products such as films, games, cartoons, fiction, and commercial property, building a globalized ecosystem for the pan-entertainment industry.

mixi Inc is a Japanese company that provides social networking services. The company conducts its business activities mainly through the operation of websites and the provision of native smartphone games on the Internet. Its business segments include the Digital Entertainment Business, Sports Business, Lifestyle Business, and Investment Business. Mixi provides games mainly including native smartphone games through the Entertainment Business, and operates business-to-consumer and consumer-to-consumer services utilizing the Internet and invests in operating companies of these services through the Media Platform Business.

Ourpalm Co Ltd is a China-based company engaged in the development, publishing, and operation of games. Its main business includes mobile terminal games, internet page games and product development, agent distribution and operation and maintenance of its peripheral products.

DeNA Co Ltd is a social media service provider in Japan. It generates majority of the portion of its revenue by providing social media and Internet marketing-related services through its Social Media segment. The E-commerce segment offers E-Commerce related services, including the operation of auction shopping and cellular phone websites under the names DeNA shopping and Mobaoku, respectively. The Others segment is engaged in travel agency and insurance agency services, and professional baseball related business. The company has its primary market in North America.

Modern Times Group (MTG) is a Swedish gaming group headquartered in Stockholm that owns and operates mobile and PC game studios, with A and B shares listed on Nasdaq Stockholm. Its studios include Plarium, maker of RAID: Shadow Legends, PlaySimple, a word- and casual-games developer acquired in 2021, InnoGames, Hutch, Ninja Kiwi (acquired 2021, known for Bloons TD), Snowprint and Futureplay. Most games are free to play, so revenue comes from in-app purchases and in-game advertising. MTG traces its origins to TV3, which Kinnevik launched in Sweden on New Year's Eve 1987 as Scandinavia's first commercial channel; its media assets were distributed to Kinnevik shareholders and listed in 1997. The group spun off its Nordic broadcasting and streaming arm as Nordic Entertainment Group (now Viaplay Group) in 2019 and sold esports operator ESL to Saudi Arabia's Savvy Gaming Group in 2022. In November 2024 it agreed to buy Plarium from Aristocrat Leisure for $620 million. In 2025 it reported record net sales of SEK 11,579 million and adjusted EBITDA of SEK 2,648 million, with 9% organic growth. Maria Redin is president and CEO.

Shift Up Corp is a game design and development studio that covers a wide range of areas from game production to promotional videos and music production, based on illustrations and solid planning and programming capabilities.

NHN operates IT-related businesses across Korea, Japan, the United States, and China. Its activities include gaming, payment services, advertising, commerce, technology services, and digital content operations.

Yalla Group Ltd is a MENA-based online social networking and gaming company. It operates two flagship mobile applications, Yalla, a voice-centric group chat platform, and Yalla Ludo, a casual gaming application featuring online versions of board games popular in MENA, with in-game voice chat and localized majlis functions. The Group has one operating segment, which is the social networking and entertainment platform.

GungHo Online Entertainment Inc is a Japanese company that plans, develops, publishes, and distributes online video games. Its portfolio includes games for smartphones, PCs, consoles, and handheld gaming devices. The company operates across several business segments, including the operation and distribution of smartphone games; the planning, development, and sale of console games; and the planning, development, licensing, and distribution of PC online games. Additionally, it is involved in the development and delivery of games for smartphones, consoles, and portable gaming platforms.

Kakao Games Corp is engaged in the business of developing and publishing Mobile and PC games.

DoubleUGames Co Ltd is a Korea-based game development company. It offers multiple gaming products such as DoubleU casino game and DoubleU bingo game and others. The company also provides Wookie Casino, a social casino game, as well as bingo, and slot machines games. In addition, it distributes its products domestically and in international markets.

Playtika is an Israeli mobile games developer and publisher headquartered in Herzliya and listed on Nasdaq under the ticker PLTK. Its free-to-play titles include Bingo Blitz, Slotomania, House of Fun, Caesars Slots, June's Journey, Solitaire Grand Harvest, Best Fiends, Board Kings, Pirate Kings, Redecor and World Series of Poker, and it earns revenue from players' purchases of virtual currency and items. Founded in 2010 by Robert Antokol and Uri Shahak around social casino games, it was bought by Caesars Entertainment in 2011 and in 2016 was sold to a Chinese consortium led by Shi Yuzhu's Giant at a $4.4 billion valuation. It then diversified into casual games through acquisitions including Jelly Button (2017), Wooga (2018), Seriously (2019), JustPlay.LOL (2022), Youda Games and Innplay Labs (2023) and SuperPlay (2024). Playtika completed its initial public offering in January 2021 at $27 per share. For 2025 it reported revenue of $2,755.4 million and adjusted EBITDA of $753.2 million, with casual games generating 70.8% of revenue and Bingo Blitz and Slotomania about 35%; average daily paying users rose to 370,000.

Guangxi Xinxunda Technology Group Co Ltd is engaged in Game software development, game operation and promotion, Internet performing arts and telecommunications business, etc.

DoubleDown Interactive Co Ltd is a developer and publisher of digital games on mobile and web-based platforms. The company is the creator of multi-format interactive entertainment experiences for casual players. The company's operating segments include the social casino games segment and the iGaming segment. The company generates the majority of its revenue from social casino games. Geographically, the company generates the majority of its revenue from the United States.

Ciwen Media Co Ltd is a China-based company engaged in the investment, manufacture, and publication of movie and television plays. It is also engaged in the research, development, and promotion of games, artist brokerage business and the provision of information technology. The company distributes its products within domestic market and to overseas markets.

VNG Corp offers variety of products and services, including Online games, Communications and Media, Fintech, Cloud services, Zalo AI, and TrueID.

Hubei Century Network Technology Inc provides internet content and service aggregation platforms. Its products and services are network entertainment platforms, mobile internet, internet value-added products, and advertising business. It provides services to Internet cafes, the education sector, hotels, and other public Internet service sites.

Tanwan Inc Formerly ZX Inc is a publisher of online game products in China. It is devoted to marketing and operating online games (in particular mobile games) in China. The online games developed by its clients marketed and operated by the company are delivered to players under the Tan Wan brand. The company has enabled the marketing and operation of game products. Its geographic markets are Mainland China, Hong Kong, and Others. It generates revenue from marketing and operating online games and consumer product business, including sales of private-label and local-flavor rice noodle products and other fast consumer foods under the brand Zha Zha Hui.

NetDragon Websoft Holdings Ltd is an investment holding company. Along with its subsidiaries, it operates in the following reportable segments: gaming and application services, the Mynd.ai business, and the property development business. Its gaming and application services segment, which generates the majority of revenue, includes Internet and technology-enabled services, including gaming and software, and related or ancillary services. The mynd.ai business is mainly an overseas education business. Geographically, the group generates maximum revenue from Mainland China and the rest from the United States of America, Europe, and other regions.

Kaiser (China) Culture Co Ltd is a pan-entertainment company in China. It is engaged in mobile game research and development and distribution, animation production and investment, film and television drama production and investment, and Internet culture industry investment.

GREE Holdings Inc is a Japanese internet media company headquartered in Tokyo. It is engaged in developing the Game and Anime, Metaverse, DX, Manga, and Investment Business.

GRAVITY Co Ltd is an online and mobile games developer and publisher based in Korea. Its principal product, Ragnarok Online, is an online game which is available in more than 91 markets. Its games include Ragnarok Online, Requiem, Dragonica (Dragon Saga), Ragnarok Online II, Requiem Online, and R.O.S.E. Online. The company generates revenue from online games, mobile games and other sources including character based merchandise and animation.

PT MNC Digital Entertainment Tbk is a content provider in Indonesia, has its core business in producing, developing, and distributing content and intellectual properties across all existing media platforms. The company's main business is supported by its various business units engaged in media and entertainment activities, such as drama production houses, infotainment, reality shows, game shows, animation, films, original content, music labels, advertising agencies, content & IP licensing, talent management, social media, including multi-channel networks (MCN), OTT superapps, and online portals. The company's operating segments include Digital, Content and IP, Talent, and Subscription. The company generates maximum revenue from the Content and IP, Talent segment.