Talpa Takes Stake in Games Company

HILVERSUM/ROTTERDAM: Talpa Holding has acquired an interest in the games company Identity Games, as it looks to build out extensions for its formats such as The Voice and I Love My Country.

Identity Games will be working alongside Talpa’s content and digital departments. The company will be evaluating Talpa shows to see if it can be used to produce games products. Last year, Identity Games incorporated the iPad into board games. The iPad board game The GameChanger will be available in stores starting in October.

“Talpa is first and foremost a true creative developer, and that’s exactly what we are,” said Emile Kalis, the creative director at Identity Games. “Talpa devises and produces television programs and we do the same with games and games apps, which makes us a perfect match. Identity Games can be an extension into the living room for Talpa.”

“With The GameChanger, Identity Games is taking playing with and on tablet computers to the next level,” said Pim Schmitz, Talpa’s CEO. “The integration of television, games and apps is moving rapidly. Tablets and smart phones are the second screen and, as producers, we want to make the best possible use of the potential they offer. People at home want to do more than just watch television programs; they want to participate. But we also see opportunities for a great new board game based on the I Love My Country format, for instance.”

“Formats such as The Voice, I Love My Country and Battle of the Sexes are clearly fantastic family show formulas that can be used as a basis for games and other related products,” added Erik Spindler, the managing director of Identity Games. “It has been done in the past, but we intend to do this structurally. And we don’t just mean in the Netherlands and Europe, because this certainly brings the U.S. market a step closer for us.”

“The GameChanger we developed is a completely electronic games board in which you place the iPad,” Kalis explained. “From that moment onwards, the iPad becomes an interactive part of the board. This is a new platform and it allows you to make new versions of existing board games, but you can also develop entirely new games. This makes the iPad a sort of We-Pad,” said Spindler, “because it’s truly social and for the entire family. The GameChanger will hit the stores in the Netherlands in October.”