Mobile Gaming Firm Skillz Plans IPO Via SPAC

Mobile game platform Skillz is looking to go public, and a partnership with Flying Eagle Acquisition Corp. could help it do so, according to a company blog post.

This kind of transaction, known as a special purpose acquisition company, or SPAC, has been gaining traction as of late. The term means a “blank check” acquisition fund without development plans, merging with a private company wanting to go public.

The company particularly works in competitive and casual tournaments, like the thousands of such examples from this year in eSports and games played on the platform for paid entry fees. This year, Skillz’s patented gaming tech for eSports tournaments could reach as much as $1.6 billion in those fees, the post stated.

Mobile is also the quickest-expanding sector for gaming. Stats from NewZoo and GlobalData say that the amount of money generated from mobile gaming creators will likely balloon from $68 to $150 billion by 2025, the post stated.

Mobile gaming is also becoming popular as people look for things to do amid the pandemic. The gaming industry is currently larger than any of the other mainstays of entertainment like movies, books and music. There are over 2.7 billion gamers worldwide and 10 billion developers, the post stated.

Andrew Paradise, the company CEO, will keep his position and title, according to the post. He said there would be new growth that wasn’t possible before going public.

“Becoming a public company is an important milestone for Skillz,” added Paradise. “We look forward to accelerating growth as we work with our developer partners to bring Skillz-powered competitions to every kind of game for billions of gamers worldwide.”

In August, Skillz entered into a partnership with Bowlero Corporation to add a virtual bowling game for customers. The move is especially helpful now as it will help keep entertained while remaining socially distant due to the pandemic.