Tamatem, the Arab world’s mobile games publisher, has raised a $3.5M Series A follow-on round to double down on the MENA region as well expand to underserved markets worldwide.
Tamatem’s $3.5M round was led by existing investor Wamda Capital, with participation from Modern Electronics Company (a subsidiary of AlFaisaliah Group) and North Base Media.
According to the firm’s CEO Hussam Hammo said “lots of startups in the Middle East feel their market potential is limited to this region. I love seeing startups expand beyond those boundaries and I am proud that the team at Tamatem is now looking beyond just the Arabic speaking market. I believe this latest round of funding will allow us to deliver on our vision of becoming the top mobile games publisher for every underserved emerging market in the world.”
This year, the firm will launch offline events, open its offices in Riyadh and with the support of Modern Electronics Company, foster business development opportunities in the region’s largest market.
The firm also aims to launch new titles in Q1 2020, leverage its existing data science capabilities and market expertise to compound their dominance in the publishing space and become the region’s premier launching engine for new games.
Following great success in the Arabic speaking market- with over 75 million downloads, 3.5 million monthly active users and a $2.5MM venture round in 2018- Tamatem will expand beyond its current regional boundaries. The firm also plans to publish titles in other emerging and underserved markets.
Turi Munthe, Venture Partner at North Base Media, said: “The games market in the Middle East is set for extraordinary growth, and nobody is better placed to drive it than Tamatem”.
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The mobile games developer, creating casual titles with a broad reach and relatively low monetization, has build the largest database of Arabic user downloads in the region. It pivoted to a publishing model in 2016, working with leading developers from all over the world to expand their reach in the market.
Wajih Beiruti, CEO of Modern Electronics Company, added “Tamatem has led the mobile gaming space in the region for 6 years and we’re very excited to be working with them on a closer basis. Being the distributor of Sony for 50 years and having worked with them on building the gaming ecosystem in Saudi Arabia through PlayStation and other key publishers, I believe we can create tremendous value for Arabic speaking gamers by working closely with Tamatem. I look forward to working with Tamatem on their expansion”
Arabic is the 4th most spoken language and yet, only 1% of online content is available in Arabic. In addition, the region boasts the world’s highest ARPPUs (Average Revenue Per Paying User) presenting a great opportunity for international developers interested in the MENA market.
This, combined with high barriers to entry for foreign developers due to language complexities, cultural specificities, and unique monetization mechanisms, makes Tamatem an ideal publisher choice for any mobile games studio looking to maximize their global reach.
This round of funding follows the firm’s series A in 2018 and the signing of multiple new titles set to launch in Q1 2020.
