Startup Playtainment announces new $5m funding round
Top industry execs including Jason Robins and Noel Hayden involved in US-based Winner Winner app
US-based gaming startup Playtainment has concluded a $5m funding round led by SDV holdings and a number of top gaming executives and investors.
The backers and execs include Jason Robins, co-founder and CEO of DraftKings, Noel Hayden, founder of Gamesys, and Elad Cohen, who co-founded Playtech, Astralis Capital, and Sharp Alpha Advisors.
Playtertainment, which previously raised $3m in seed funding, was founded in 2019 by Jon Davidman and Cody Flaherty and enables users to play real claw machines and ticket redemption-style arcade games through live video streaming on flagship app Winner Winner.
Winner Winner is reported to have over 1.2 million downloads since it hit the app stores in 2020 and is seeing more than 30% quarterly growth.
It currently provides access to 120+ of its claw and ticket redemption arcade games, housed in its Las Vegas studio, with multi-player, interactive games like mini-golf and mini-bowling.
The app is currently available to players in the US and UK, while the team is working on launching in new markets in 2022 and expects to open studios in Europe and Asia as they continue to grow.
“These games are known worldwide and have proven demand across the globe. Our goal is to make them accessible to everyone, anywhere at any time,” commented Flaherty.
Meanwhile, Davidman said: “We’re really excited about the future. What we’re working on has never existed on a large scale, and we truly believe what we are building will change the way we think about physical games and competition.
“Through technology, we’re able to create a highly interactive, connected gaming experience that allows players to compete with real, physical games and get rewarded when they win those contests.”