Gree shells out $175m for Pokelabo

Mobile gaming company Gree has continued its agressive expansion with the acquisition of Pokelabo.

The $175 million purchase of the mobile card gaming company is the third such acquisition in 18 months, including a $210 million buyout of Funzio.

News of the deal comes as fortunes wane for rival Zynga, which has just laid off five percent of its workforce in a bid to cut costs.

The purchase is aimed helping Gree meet its goal of releasing more games within the popular card battling genre, enhancing Gree’s arsenal to combat the successes of its other rivals DeNA and Konami.

Pokelabo board member Gen Isayama told the Wall Street Journal that the company was doing $4m-to-$5m in revenue a month and growing, with about 200,000 daily active users.

Founded in 2007, Pokelabo has made several card battling games for smartphones, and most recently released Mythic Monsters