PlayFirst, Inc., a leading publisher of casual games raised $16.5 million in its Series C financing

What Company Is Offering:
PlayFirst is a leading publisher focused on creating shared casual game experiences around lasting original brands. Committed to building casual game play rich in story and character, PlayFirst works with talented internal and external developers to bring mass market games to multiple platforms, including PC, Mac, mobile, handheld and console.
The company's portfolio includes the world-renowned Diner Dash® franchise, as well as top-selling games such as Wedding Dash(TM), Chocolatier®, and Dream Chronicles(TM). Founded in 2004, PlayFirst is funded by Mayfield Fund, Trinity Ventures, Rustic Canyon Partners and DCM.

How Much They Got From VCs:

PlayFirst, Inc., a leading publisher of casual games, announced that it has raised $16.5 million in its Series C financing round led by DCM. Existing investors, including Mayfield Fund, Trinity Ventures and Rustic Canyon Partners, also participated in the round. Previously, PlayFirst raised a total of $10 million in its Series A and B rounds, bringing the current total of venture capital raised to $26.5 million.

Purpose Of Raising Funds:

PlayFirst plans to use the funding to accelerate both web and game development and to satisfy the increasing and ever-evolving demand for high-quality casual game experiences. Based on the initial success from new business models and new brands including Chocolatier®, Dream Chronicles(TM) and Wedding Dash(TM), PlayFirst will continue to expand and shape the casual games market.

How Is Market Of That Kind Company:

According to analyst firm DFC Intelligence, the casual games/online games market is expected to reach $2.2 billion by 2012. David Cole, analyst, DFC Intelligence, said, "Innovative companies willing to diversify platforms, create quality content, move beyond the $20 business model and introduce innovations like microtransactions to casual games will continue to drive this industry forward."


About VCs:
DCM is an early stage venture capital firm supporting entrepreneurs building world-class technology companies. The firm's partners manage US$1.6 billion and have funded leading technology companies including 2Wire, 51job, @Motion (Openwave), About.com (The New York Times Co.), All About, Arroyo (Cisco), Clearwire, Dang Dang, eDreams (TA), Foundry Networks, HireRight, Internap, IPivot (Intel), JCI, Neopath Networks (Cisco), Neutral Tandem, nQuire (Siebel), PGP Corporation, Recourse Technologies (Symantec), Sigmatel, SMIC, Sling Media (EchoStar), Trion World Network, Inc., and Vimicro. DCM offers hands-on operational guidance and access to an extensive network of resources, including close relationships with many of the Pacific Rim's leading companies and investors.
For more information, at http://www.dcm.com.

For more information visit www.playfirst.com and www.dinerdash.com.