Angry Birds Maker Rovio Closes London Studio

Image copyright Reuters

The company behind the hit mobile game Angry Birds has closed its London studio, after warning its profits were likely to fall.

Rovio's head of games, Wilhelm Taht, also resigned on Friday, leaving chief executive Kati Levoranta in charge.

The Finnish games company has warned that its brand licensing revenues could decline 40% this year.

It has blamed tough competition and higher marketing costs for the poor outlook.

Rovio's London studio was opened in 2017 and the company went public in September with a valuation of £786m.

But on 22 February, the Finnish games maker issued a profit warning that caused its shares to drop by 50%.

Announcing the closure of its London studio, Rovio said it wanted to concentrate on its studios in Finland and Sweden.

The company had employed seven games developers in London.

Rovio saw rapid growth after it launched Angry Birds in 2009, but it made a significant loss in 2015 and cut a third of its staff.

In 2016, its Angry Birds movie earned $350 million (£254m) in cinemas and helped revive sales of the game.

A sequel is expected in 2019.