Zynga’s (ZNGA) $210 million purchase of Draw Something OMGPOP is officially a dud. In Zynga’s latest preliminary financial report, the company revealed that its third quarter revenue will be lower than expected, clocking in between $300 million to $305 million and it will report a net loss between $95 million and $105 million. In what can only be an indirect admission that the Draw Something craze is over, Zynga also said it plans to write off between $85 million to $95 million related to the OMGPOP purchase.
Zynga CEO and founder Marcus Pincus said that the third quarter of 2012 “continued to be challenged” but “as a whole we did not execute to our satisfaction.” Pincus said he plans implement cost reductions in the fourth quarter and focus on investing in the mobile industry.
In a blog post to his team, Pincus said he will try to turn things around by “further investing in other genres like casino where we already lead with Zynga Poker and blue PVP, a category we pioneered with Mafia Wars, and now have the opportunity to reinvent with the industry’s best talent here at Zynga.”
With 311 million monthly active users, is social gaming dead yet? One could say it might have already “OMGPOPPed.”
