Firemint's team can focus on innovation

EA announces Acquisition of Firemint, a mobile game developer based in Melbourne, Australia. Media reports said the deal was priced at 20 million to 40 million dollars. Founded in 1999, Firemint is a developer of the mobile game Flight control and real racing. These two games are very popular on the iphone and ipad. The deal is expected to be completed within 4 weeks. Upon completion of the transaction, Firemint will be part of EA Interactive, the EA Mobile and Web gaming department. Barry Cottle, executive vice president of EA Interactive Barry Cotte, said Firemint's team has been "critical to commercial success" and that the team's addition will strengthen EA's leadership in the gaming industry. Rob Murray, founder and CEO of Firemint, said on the company's official blog that the company and its 60 employees would remain in Melbourne and operate as usual. He also said that after the deal was completed, Firemint's team was able to focus on innovation and get the resources necessary to develop good games. This January, Firemint acquired another Australian gaming studio, Infinite Interactive, which is known for its warlords and puzzle Quest series games.