A team of gaming and media executives in Los Angeles have invested $1.5 million into a new company called OGPlanet that license popular Korean games and bring them to the U.S.
The targeted multiplayer, PC games are those built on a “Second Life-like” model that let anyone play for free, but offer players the opportunity to purchase game pieces, clothing and accessories, the company said.
These “virtual economy” games have already attracted tens of millions of players in Asia and are beginning to build a large U.S. audience. One example is Albatross18, which is OGPlanet’s first announced game.
The company says that existing virtual economy games in Asia show “an average of $10-$20 per player each month.” In the U.S., Albatross18 is already generating higher revenues of more than $25 per month per player, the company said.
The company’s chief executive is Sanchal Pak, who spent many years in Korea funding these companies for LG Ventures, so it is relying on his network for much of its strategy.
The company told VentureBeat last week that key investors include the following: Richard Wolpert, former President of Disney Online and a strategic advisor to RealNetworks and Accel Partners,; Mark Surfas, formerly founder and CEO of GameSpy; Peter Levin, CEO of BellRock Media; and Andrew Wright, former Vice President of RealArcade and currently CEO of SmileBox. Seattle-based RealNetworks is also an investor.
9:29 pm
Accel, Venrock, William Morris — and AT&T — launching new media fund » VentureBeat said:
[...] been actively investing in online game companies since 2006, including gaming site Kongregate, virtual world creator OGPlanet, and multiplayer online game GameLayers. He is also an advisor to [...]
11:19 am
Korean-to-US online game importer OGPLanet now profitable, gets funding » VentureBeat said:
[...] OGPlanet raised a first round of venture funding from a number of prominent game and media executive…, including Richard Wolpert, former President of Disney Online and a strategic advisor to RealNetworks and Accel Partners,; Mark Surfas, formerly founder and CEO of GameSpy; Peter Levin, CEO of BellRock Media; and Andrew Wright, former Vice President of RealArcade and currently CEO of SmileBox. Seattle-based RealNetworks is also an investor. Tags: co:ogplanet, inv:dfj-athena, inv:lg venture investments, inv:m ventures SHARETHIS.addEntry({ title: “Korean-to-US online game importer OGPLanet now profitable, gets funding”, url: “http://venturebeat.com/2008/07/17/korean-to-us-online-game-importer-ogplanet-now-profitable-gets-funding/” }); Sphere It Digg this story! venturebeat227:http://venturebeat.com/2008/07/17/korean-to-us-online-game-importer-ogplanet-now-profitable-gets-funding/ var disqus_url = ‘http://venturebeat.com/2008/07/17/korean-to-us-online-game-importer-ogplanet-now-profitable-gets-funding/ ‘; var disqus_title = ‘Korean-to-US online game importer OGPLanet now profitable, gets funding’; var disqus_message = ‘The sale of virtual goods drives revenue for many game companies in Asia but that trend is still getting off the ground in the U.S. OGPLanet is licensing popular games in Korea and modifying them the U.S. market, betting that the trend is going to be big here.%0AThe translated games are graphics-intensive role-playing games, such [...]%0A%0A %0A %0A ‘; View the entire comment thread. Trackback URL [...]