Rovio IPO ‘will not launch in 2012’

Finnish developer Rovio has ended speculation of launching an IPO in 2012 by revealing it will not go public this year.

Speaking to Reuters, CMO Peter Vesterbacka said that the casual games studio was in no rush and that it was too early for a public offering despite Angry Birds’ blockbuster success.

"We are not in a rush. This year is way too early for an IPO, there are too many open things, and we are in a very early stage of the Angry Birds lifecycle," said Vesterbacka.


He also said that the company is unsure on where to launch a potential public offering, now likely to occur in 2013, but highlighted Asia as a distinct possibility.

"Hong Kong is very interesting, absolutely, but again it is totally dependent on how markets develop. Asia is where all the people are, and future growth," he said.

Angry Birds has been downloaded more than 600 million times since release in 2009, and reportedly sold 6.5 million copies over the Christmas period.