Xurpas partners with Anne Curtis, other celebs in game dev't firm

Consumer technology firm Xurpas Inc. has launched a new company creating mobile games named after celebrities, according to a disclosure filed with the Philippine Stock Exchange Wednesday. 

 

Shifting from its usual approach of buying into existing companies, Xurpas established Xeleb Inc., with Anne Curtis, Isabelle Daza, Kim Atienza and Erwan Heussaff as principal shareholders. The company has a paid-in capital of P20 million.

 

Supposedly the first of its kind in the Philippines, Xeleb is first company established by Xurpas from the ground up since launching an initial public offering late last year. 

 

"We view Anne, Isabelle, Kim and Erwan as 'tent-pole' properties. We'll build a constantly growing portfolio of games based on their celebrity brand. The four celebrity shareholders will also help Xeleb expand its network of stars," Xurpas CEO Raymond Racaza said. 

 

One of the games in the Xeleb portfolio is "Anne Galing," a Match-3 puzzle game available on Google Play. 

 

Xeleb was established on the heels of the success of mobile game "Kim Kardashian: Hollywood," which has been downloaded over 28 million times and played for over 11 billion minutes since launching in 2014, Racaza said. 

 

Xurpas has committed P395 million for new investments, leaving it with P895 million for further expansion. 

 

In the first quarter, the company saw its revenues increase by 52 percent to P132.23 million from P86.76 million a year earlier driven by its core mobile consumer and enterprise businesses. – Keith Richard Mariano/VS, GMA News