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Hot new trend - Social Gaming

May 13th, 2008 • Related • Filed Under

After facebook, myspace , LinkedIn and a myriad of other social networks raking in rich valuations for their large user bases, it’s now a hot new trend that is emerging - Social Gaming.

While social networks such as Facebook have drawn attention for their ability to rapidly attract users, the gaming applications that run on them are becoming a core part of what repeatedly draws users back,After messaging with friends and viewing photos, gaming is probably the biggest part of bringing users to social networks - according to David Sze, Greylock Partners.

“Gaming becomes a core aspect that creates context for interaction between individuals,” said Sze, who has previously worked at gaming companies Electronic Arts Inc. and SCi Entertainment Group PLC’s Crystal Dynamics. “Everyone has that competitive spirit and wants to go back and figure out why I don’t have the high score, and how I can make the next move.”

Social Gaming Network Inc. has raised a $15 million Series A funding led by Greylock Partners, with participation from Founders Fund. Also participating were Columbia Capital and Novak Biddle Venture Partners, which are previous investors in SGN through Freewebs Corp., from which SGN spun out in December.

Both Greylock and Founders Fund have strong ties to some of the most popular social networking sites. David Sze, a partner at Greylock who is joining SGN’s board, previously invested in Facebook, Digg Inc. and LinkedIn Corp. And Founders Fund, whose partner Peter Thiel is a Facebook board member, was also an investor in Facebook.

Reflecting the increased interest, two conferences are being held just on social gaming in the San Francisco area in the next month.

Based in Palo Alto, Calif., SGN has had its applications installed by more than 51 million people on Facebook, behind only widget makers Slide Inc. and RockYou Inc, according to the Web site Adonomics. SGN said it now has more than 1 million daily active users.

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