According to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Niantic has attracted 26 new investors and has received an additional $190 million in funding. This brings the total investments to $415 million, with the company itself being valued at $3.9 billion according to the Wall Street Journal.
Players have spent a grand total of $2.2 billion on Pokémon GO since its launch in July 2016, with Niantic earning almost $800 million throughout 2017. The company grew by 35 percent in the same year. Niantic has used its earnings to buy or invest in other mobile or augmented-reality game companies, with its most recent being an investment in DigiLens’ augmented-reality displays at the end of November.
This growth shows that Niantic’s new initiatives in 2018 have paid off. These events introduced the “Community Day” feature, a monthly event in which rare Pokémon would be more readily available. The feature came with some other perks like increased experience points or stardust.
Pokémon GO went through myriad changes in 2018, with the game’s over 30 other in-game events and over 10 on-site events all over the world. Through these updates, the game saw an increase of not only players, but also spending. Each of the events (including the Community Days) introduced limited packs players could purchase, often with a large number of helpful items pertaining to the events.
In addition to these in-game events, Niantic also added in a wave of new Pokémon from the Sinnoh region into the game, adding more creatures for players to discover. The game even featured the release of a brand-new Pokémon, Meltan. Niantic is also still working on Ingress, its first attempt at an augmented-reality game, releasing the revamped Ingress Prime in early November.
If Niantic continues its current pace for events in Pokémon GO, the company could potentially reach a total of $3 billion in revenue by the end of 2019.