Niantic, the video game maker behind "Pokemon Go," has raised $190 million as it gears up for the release of a new game that revolves around the Harry Potter universe.
The San Francisco-based firm revealed in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that it had raised the funding on Dec. 20, shortly after a Wall Street Journal report said it was in the process of raising a fresh round of capital.
Investors were not disclosed in the filing, however the document said 26 investors had participated in the funding round in total. According to the Journal's report from last month, the round was expected to be led by late-stage focused venture capital firm IVP, with participation from Samsung and aXiomatic Gaming. The Journal also reported that the round would put Niantic's valuation at $3.9 billion.
"Pokemon Go," released in July 2016, proved to be a major hit worldwide, and became the top-grossing app on Apple's U.S. App Store shortly after its release. The augmented reality game lets users walk around and capture creatures from the video game series Pokemon.
A report published by Sensor Tower on Wednesday said that the game raked in nearly $800 million in revenue in 2018, a 35 percent increase from the previous year. It said players have spent $2.2 billion on "Pokemon Go" since its launch.
Niantic is currently developing a new title, called Harry Potter: Wizards Unite, the result of a joint venture with Warner Bros. It will be an AR game — like "Pokemon Go" — where players are able to learn spells and explore their neighborhoods to find and battle magical beasts and other enemies. The game is slated to be launched at some point this year.
