Rovio doubles revenue in 2012, merch brings in nearly half of total

Angry Birds creator Rovio raked in $195m in revenue last year, thanks in large part to merchandise sales for the popular casual IP.

The developer reports it brought in a net profit of $71.3m in 2012, up $25m from the previous year. Consumer products – such as clothing lines, plushies, and school accessories – specifically brought in 45 per cent of total revenue, tripling 2011 numbers.

On top of the merchandise sales, the company attributes its growth to new gaming franchises, including Bad Piggies and Amazing Alex.

Rovio titles have racked up over 1.7bn downloads, with monthly active users reaching 263m across all platforms in December. Angry Birds itself was downloaded 30m times over the past holiday period.