In the past, Zynga has landed a number of high-profile partnerships with musicians and entertainment companies, including Snoop Dogg, Dreamworks, Nickelodeon, The Green Hornet and others. But today, the social gaming giant is announcing its largest entertainment deal to date-with pop star Lady Gaga.
Lady Gaga has partnered with Zynga previously, when the company was raising money for releif efforts around the Japanese earthquake and tsunami. On May 17, Lady Gaga and Zynga will unveil, GagaVille – a neighboring farm on FarmVille, which is a Gaga inspired farm in-gam. GagaVille will showcase Lady Gaga’s style and themes from the album and videos (crystals, unicorns, sheep on motorcycles); and gamers will have exclusive access in Farmville to songs from the artists’s new album “Born This Way” before the album is released later in the month. From May 17 to 19, players can unlock and stream a new un-released track per day. And from May 20 to 23, players can unlock and stream a significant portion of songs from the new album, plus special bonus remixes.
Additionally, Zynga $25 Game Cards, which will be available at Best Buy, will include a free download of Lady Gaga’s new album plus exclusive bonus tracks, exclusive Gaga virtual goods, and more.
Zynga is also partnering with Lady Gaga to offer branded virtual goods via Rewardville across ten of its games. Players can log onto RewardVille to redeem zCoins for exclusive limited edition Gaga inspired virtual items for the Zynga game. The company and artist are also holding a number of contests for players to get tickets to Gaga’s concerts.
In a statement, lady Gaga said: “I want to celebrate and share ‘Born This Way’ with my little monsters in a special way that’s never been done before…Zynga has created a magical place in FarmVille where my fans can come play, and be the first to listen to the album.”
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. I’d expect more partnerships like these in the entertainment and music industries. Zynga just brought on DreamWorks Animation chief Jeffrey Katzenberg to its board of directors, signaling that the company sees tremendous potential in Hollywood. As we’ve written in the past, DreamWorks and Katzenberg have taken movies and titles to Broadway, TV, merchandise, and even into the video gaming world via partnerships. Katzenberg’s expertise and Hollywood roladex could help Zynga pursue this strategy into the entertainment world.