Playphone
| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Mobile gaming, Mobile content distribution |
| Founded | February 6, 2003 in Campbell, California, United States |
| Founder | Ron Cznerny |
| Headquarters | San Jose , United States |
Area served | Worldwide (including Latin America, Africa, Asia, Europe) |
| Products | Mobile games, mobile content distribution platform, social gaming network, carrier app stores |
| Owner | GungHo Online Entertainment (majority stake acquired 2015) |
| Parent | GungHo Online Entertainment |
Playphone is a platform for mobile gaming, originally established in 2003 and re-established in 2006, with its headquarters located in San Jose, California. The company focuses on distributing mobile content directly to consumers. Financial backing comes from Menlo Ventures, Cardinal Venture Capital, and Coral Capital Management. Playphone functions as a subsidiary under GungHo Online Entertainment.
History
Founded on February 6, 2003, by Ron Cznerny in Campbell, California, Playphone later moved its operations to San Jose. The company's initial product offering consisted of prepaid phone cards that included two mobile games, two polyphonic ringtones, and two wallpaper designs. Early collaborations featured Digital Bridges, which provided titles such as Lara Croft Tomb Raider, alongside Disney’s The Lion King.
In September 2006, Playphone obtained $9.1 million through Series B financing from Menlo Ventures and Cardinal Venture Capital. That same month, it joined forces with RealNetworks to introduce a subscription-based service derived from RealArcade, broadening its catalog of mobile games, ringtones, and wallpapers.
By May 2007, the company secured $18.75 million in Series C funding from Scale Venture Capital aimed at expanding its presence in Latin America. A year later, in May 2008, Playphone acquired Pitch Entertainment Group—a London-based firm founded by David Warburton—enabling the company to operate across 20 countries spanning Africa, Asia, and Europe. Following this acquisition, Playphone partnered with Cellufun to deliver mobile content and established distribution agreements with the UK’s Top Up TV for a branded television channel as well as with Virgin Mobile USA and Cincinnati Bell.
In 2009, Playphone enhanced its collaboration with media optimization company Vantrix by integrating the Vantrix Storefront Optimizer to improve content sales within the Asian mobile market.
October 2010 saw the debut of Playphone Social, a social gaming platform designed for smartphones and tablets. The platform's initial supported title was an Android version of Playphone Poker released in June 2011.
In August 2011, Playphone formed a partnership with Chinese mobile game developer Perfect World to distribute games through its social gaming network. By December of that year, the official launch of the Playphone Social Gaming Network featured cross-platform multiplayer functionality aimed at competing with platforms like OpenFeint and Ngmoco.
To enhance marketing and distribution capabilities for this network, Playphone acquired SocialHour—a mobile social marketing company—in March 2012.
Playphone introduced its first carrier app store named Games Portal on Verizon’s network in 2013; this store came pre-installed on various Android devices. The company expanded distribution further in 2015 by launching a store on the CyanogenMod operating system.
Later in 2015, Japanese publisher GungHo Online Entertainment purchased a majority stake of 70% in Playphone, turning it into a subsidiary to drive growth within southern Asian mobile markets. By the end of 2018, GungHo had discontinued Playphone’s online presence at playphone.com.