Netflix announced on March 2, 2022, that it would buy Finnish mobile-game developer and publisher Next Games through a recommended public cash tender offer. Netflix offered €2.10 per share, valuing Next Games’ equity at approximately €65 million. Contemporary U.S. coverage commonly rounded that figure to about $72 million, so the dollar amount was an exchange-rate conversion—not a separately disclosed cash price.
The acquisition was aimed at expanding Netflix’s internal game-development capabilities, particularly in mobile games, entertainment-franchise adaptations and live-service operations. Netflix later said it had acquired all outstanding Next Games shares in 2022.
What Netflix acquired
Next Games was a Helsinki-based Finnish game developer and publisher founded in 2013. At the time of the announcement, it had approximately 120 employees and specialized in mobile games built around recognizable entertainment properties. Its work included development and operation of live-service games, which require ongoing content, analytics, updates and player-retention efforts after launch.
That profile made Next Games a specialist studio rather than a major console, PC or AAA publisher. Netflix was buying a mobile-focused team and its production experience, not a large catalog of blockbuster games or a new set of entertainment rights.
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Games associated with Next Games
- Stranger Things: Puzzle Tales was a story-driven puzzle RPG based on Netflix’s Stranger Things. It demonstrated an existing working relationship between the two companies before the acquisition.
- Next Games also developed critically acclaimed games based on The Walking Dead franchise, according to Netflix’s announcement.
Netflix already controlled its Stranger Things entertainment property. The transaction bought the developer’s capabilities; it was not a purchase of the franchise itself.
The transaction terms
| Term | What was announced |
|---|---|
| Announcement | March 2, 2022 in Netflix’s public announcement; the investor-relations release is dated March 1, 2022 |
| Structure | Recommended voluntary public cash tender offer |
| Offer price | €2.10 cash per Next Games share |
| Equity value | Approximately €65 million |
| Common dollar equivalent | Approximately $72 million in contemporary coverage; a rounded conversion whose value varies with exchange rates |
| Board position | Next Games’ board unanimously recommended that shareholders accept the offer |
| Expected closing at announcement | Second quarter of 2022, subject to customary conditions |
| Later completion confirmation | Netflix said in a January 13, 2023 tax notice that it had acquired all outstanding Next Games shares in 2022 |
Netflix’s original announcement described an agreement and a pending tender offer, so “acquires” was not the precise status on announcement day. The later tax notice establishes that the purchase was completed during 2022, but the sources here do not establish an exact closing date.
Netflix’s transaction release sets out the offer price and equity value, while Next Games’ board statement covers the recommendation and tender-offer process.
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Why Next Games fit Netflix’s strategy
Netflix said the acquisition would make Next Games a core studio in a strategically important region and talent market. Four capabilities explain the fit.
Mobile development
Netflix initially concentrated its games effort on mobile devices. Next Games already had the design, engineering, publishing and platform knowledge required for that market, allowing Netflix to add an operating team instead of building every capability from scratch.
Entertainment-franchise adaptation
Next Games had experience turning familiar television and entertainment properties into interactive products. Its prior work on Stranger Things: Puzzle Tales meant Netflix was acquiring a team that had already worked with one of its most important franchises.
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Live-service operations
A mobile game is not finished at launch. Live-service teams manage events, new content, balancing, technical support, community needs and retention. Netflix specifically highlighted Next Games’ ability to create and operate games that maintained a dedicated audience over time.
Helsinki’s talent base
Netflix described Helsinki as a strategically important location for game development. Buying an established local studio gave the company a foothold in a recognized European development market and access to an existing team.
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How the deal fit Netflix’s broader games bet
Netflix presented games as a complement to its streaming service and entertainment franchises. Its initial model was to include games with a Netflix membership rather than sell them through a separate game-store business. In its October 2022 shareholder letter, Netflix said its games had no in-game advertisements or in-app purchases at that time.
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The same letter reported 35 games available on the service and 55 more in development in October 2022. That is a dated milestone, not a current catalog count.
Owning a studio could give Netflix more direct control over development priorities, product roadmaps, live operations and coordination between a show and a related game. It could also speed access to specialist talent compared with recruiting and assembling a new mobile team. Those are strategic advantages inferred from the companies’ stated objectives, not promises of subscriber growth or financial returns.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.The business challenge Netflix inherited
Mobile expertise did not equal broad platform coverage
Next Games’ strength was mobile and live-service development. The acquisition did not automatically provide Netflix with console, PC, AAA or cloud-gaming capabilities. Expanding into those areas would require different technology, production structures and talent.
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Franchise awareness is not durable engagement
A recognizable television brand can attract initial interest, but it cannot replace compelling game design or sustained content. Live-service success depends on retaining players after the novelty of the franchise fades.
Different monetization models
Next Games’ existing business reflected conventional mobile-game economics: approximately 95% of its 2020 revenue came from in-game purchases. Netflix’s games offering, by contrast, was marketed as included with membership and without in-app purchases at that time. Integrating the studio therefore involved more than changing ownership; it potentially required adapting products, metrics and operating assumptions to Netflix’s subscription model.
Integration and return risks
- An acquired studio can lose experienced employees or creative speed if corporate processes become cumbersome.
- Live-service development carries continuing costs for updates, operations and support.
- The acquisition announcement did not provide a forecast for game revenue, subscriber acquisition, churn reduction or return on investment.
Next Games’ scale at the time
| Measure | Reported figure | Qualification |
|---|---|---|
| Employees | Approximately 120 | At the end of 2021 |
| 2020 sales | Approximately €27.2 million | Reported in Netflix’s transaction announcement |
| Revenue from in-game purchases | 95% | Share of 2020 revenue |
| Founded | 2013 | Company founding year |
These figures show why the deal should be understood as a targeted capability acquisition. Next Games was meaningful enough to supply an experienced team and operating know-how, but it was not a large publisher on the scale of the biggest global game companies.
What the acquisition did—and did not—establish
The transaction established Netflix’s intent to build internal game-studio capacity around mobile entertainment properties. It did not establish that Netflix had become a major first-party publisher, that the purchase guaranteed successful games, or that it produced measurable gains in subscriptions, retention or revenue.
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Netflix’s later notice confirms ownership of all outstanding Next Games shares in 2022. The sources used here do not establish the studio’s current headcount, current standalone brand status, present game lineup or financial performance in 2026.
Bottom line
Netflix’s “$72 million” Next Games deal was officially an approximately €65 million equity-value tender offer at €2.10 per share. Netflix bought a Helsinki mobile studio with experience adapting entertainment franchises and running live-service games—especially relevant to its early plan to make games part of the streaming membership. The strategic value was access to people, processes and franchise know-how, not the acquisition of a blockbuster console publisher or a guaranteed new revenue stream.
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