A week after announcing the acquisition of U.S. mobile social gaming studio, Gameview, Japanese gaming giant DeNA is making a strategic investment in another U.S. gaming company, social game studio Astro Ape. The investment amount was not disclosed by the companies.

Based in Edison, N.J., Astro Ape creates social game titles for the iOS platform, including Office Heroes, an iPhone app simulating a game within the corporate world. As part of the investment, Astro Ape will develop titles for DeNA’s MiniNation mobile platform, DeNA’s subsidiary in the smartphone market.

DeNA has been actively looking to expand its footprint in the U.S. via acquisitions, investments and partnerships. In fact, this is the fourth American social gaming investment by the company over the past year. The company purchased game studio IceBreaker and invested in gaming platform AuroraFeint last year.

This year, DeNA has created a new gaming portal with Yahoo, and launched a $27.5 million social gaming VC fund. Financially, DeNA is on track to create $1 billion in revenue this year, posting strong first quarter earnings a few weeks ago, fueled by the company’s entry into the American market and debut on iPhones in 2010.

Crunchbase

• DENA

Company: DeNA

Website: dena.jp

Launch Date: March 4, 1999

IPO: 1254

Tokyo-based DeNA started in 1999 as an e-commerce company and transformed into a web service provider for PCs and cell phones since then, now employing over 500 people. The company name is a combination of “DNA” and the “e” from e-commerce. DeNA is engaged in the online advertising and affiliate business, e-commerce (mobile and PC web) and mobile portal services. The company’s biggest success is called Mobage-town, a combination of a virtual world, social network and gaming platform for...

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