Photo shows Talking Tom, the main character featured in the famous app of Outfit7. (Photo : Facebook)
Zhejiang Jinke Entertainment Culture Co. Ltd signed a framework agreement on its plans to buy out Outfit7, the creator of the popular mobile app Talking Tom and Friends, at no less than $1 billion.
Jinke was originally a maker of peroxides and related chemicals, and later ventured into the entertainment industry by talking over Zhexin Information Technology, a local mobile game developer, a year after its Initial Public Offering.
The revenue of Jinke jumped 67 percent to $89.7 million over the first months of 2016. According to the company's estimates, its net profit more than tripled last year. This momentum made the 27 percent stake of Zhu Zhigang, the company's founder and chairman, to be valued at $900 million.
Outfit7 is a U.K. app maker that has seen more than 5.4 billion downloads of its apps, with nearly 300 million monthly active users.
Four days ago, Outfit7 has announced the sale of its 100 percent stake to United Luck Group Holdings for $1 billion. United Luck is a British Virgin Islands company that is controlled by Ou Yaping, a Chinese real estate tycoon.
Ou is the founder and chairman of Sinolink Worldwide Holdings, a property developer that is headquartered in Hong Kong. He is known to be a close associate of big business movers and shakers of China such as Alibaba's Jack Ma.
Jinke has been eyeing Outfit7 for quite a while now. According to the company's filing, it has suspended trading last October due to a possible major transaction to “purchase assets in the mobile games and family entertainment sectors.”
It is still uncertain on who won the bid on buying Outfit7. To add to the confusion, three days prior to the Outfit7 sale announcement, Jinke disclosed its plan to acquire a 10 percent stake in United Luck for $5,000.
Jinke has not made any comments with regard to the Outfit7 buyout.
