FanDuel continued to add development power to its team, buying the Scottish company that created its mobile app.
FanDuel buys again
The mobile development firm Kotikan is the latest acquisition for the DFS giant FanDuel, as announced on Kotikan’s blog. Given the proximity of the two companies — both are in Edinburgh, Scotland — and their past working history, the move seems like a natural fit.
Kotikan, which has been around since 2007, started working with FanDuel on its apps for iOS and Android back in 2013. The rating for the iOS app in the iTunes store is above 4.5 stars out of 5.
Kotikan CEO Gavin Dutch wrote the following at his company’s blog:
The closer we worked together, the more we wanted to contribute to FanDuel’s success. Eventually we realised the best way to do this was to devote the entire Kotikan team to crafting FanDuel products.
The decision was not one to be made lightly – but the energy, values and culture at both FanDuel and Kotikan are so well aligned that the move feels natural. We all care about the same things and are excited to make products that are loved by millions.
The size of the firm is 56 people, according to the blog. A story at the Daily Record said the amount of money involved in the deal was undisclosed, and that the firm is being folded into FanDuel:
The deal is described as a “acqui-hire”, meaning Kotikan’s 50-strong team have been offered roles with FanDuel to work exclusively on FanDuel products.
FanDuel focuses on development
The move comes shortly after FanDuel raised $275 million in investment funding for a valuation north of a billion dollars.
The purchase of Kotikan is the latest example of the value FanDuel places on having web and mobile developers on its team:
- Earlier this month, FanDuel announced its intent to open an office in Glasgow, also in Scotland, with plans to hire 200 staff in the tech-rich city.
- In May, FanDuel hired about 40 employees from the shuttered Zynga Sports 365 office in Orlando, Florida.
Less than a year ago, FanDuel employed less than 100 staff, before its last round of funding in September 2014. With additions since that round, and taking into account all the recent moves , it appears FanDuel will eventually employ around 500.
Clearly, with all of these announced plans, FanDuel is unlikely to sit on its current web and mobile platforms, and will actively look to improve both.
It also seems likely that FanDuel won’t stick with just the current model for its contests, and its soon-to-be sizeable development team will be looking for new ways of interfacing with its customers.
FanDuel said its latest funding round would also be used for marketing and advertising, but it’s clear that the DFS site values manpower and creating the best product it can as the key to acquiring and retaining customers.
