Angry Birds, happy company: Rovio talks Hong Kong IPO

Angry Birds, the two year-old blockbuster game and burgeoning franchise, has propelled its Finnish-maker Rovio to super-stardom. Now, the company is mulling the idea of joining the ranks of public companies — in Hong Kong.

Rovio intends to list its stock on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 2013, according to Finnish publication Tekniikka & Talous.

“In Asia there are growing markets — the people and the money,” Rovio’s chief marketing officer Peter Vesterbacka told Reuters, although he would not confirm the company’s plans for its seemingly inevitable IPO.

The 2013 date obviously conflicts with previous reports and even contradicts Vesterbacka’s own statements. In October, he talked openly about the likelihood of a late 2012 public offering.

Rovio’s long-stated intention is to become an entertainment conglomerate that rivals huge brand names like Disney. To that end, the company has ramped up its merchandising efforts and is developing a feature-length Angry Birds movie.

Rovio opened its first office outside of Finland in Shanghai earlier this year.

Update: Vesterbacka told VentureBeat that Rovio has yet to set the time or place of its IPO. “It’s still far out in the future,” he said. “Hong Kong is one of many possibilities.”

Image via jpg3/Flickr