Nazara Technologies, a leading mobile game developer and publisher, has appointed Manish Agarwal as its new CEO. This appointment looks to further strengthen the senior leadership team as the company continues to enjoy sustained growth and consolidates its position as the largest smart phone publisher in India. Nitish Mittersain, who founded Nazara Technologies, will assume the role of the managing director.
On the appointment Nitish said: “As an industry as well as a company, we are at an inflection point today. While on the demand-side, the adoption of smartphones and enhanced connectivity is helping the segment grow at an unprecedented pace, on the supply-side there is tremendous interest in the Indian market from global players, new entrants, content developers and investors. To remain competitive in this market, we need to scale up our operations and increase the management bandwidth, and this is where Manish will play a role. We are certain that his experience of running a large mobile gaming business, expertise of developing world-class games and passion for the mobile game developer ecosystem will help in taking Nazara to new heights.”
Formerly the CEO of Reliance Games, Manish brings with over 16 years of rich experience in digital, consumer marketing and mobile gaming. Under his able leadership and far sighted vision, Reliance Games went through a radical transformation to become one of the leaders in the mobile gaming industry. He was instrumental for development of successful, multi-million download games including Real Steel franchise, Pacific Rim and Hunger Games: Panem Run among others. He previously held senior leadership positons at Unilever, Microsoft, Rediff, Infosys and UTV.
“In Manish, the company has added a co-pilot to its illustrious founder Nitish and together they will steer this fast growing company to greater heights,” said Westbridge Capital India Advisors MD Sandeep Singhal.
Nazara Technologies, under the twin-leadership of Nitish and Manish, will look to fortify its dominance in the mobile gaming industry through forging strategic partnerships with studios across India, South East Asia and Central Europe, building a formidable talent pool to publish content for Indian consumers and securing local and global partnerships for IPs.
Speaking about his appointment, Manish added: “Nazara has been a pioneer in the Indian mobile gaming space. With an in-depth understanding of the gaming ecosystem and a highly talented team, the company is well poised to shift gears and enter a phase of faster growth. I am glad to be a part of Nazara, and together with Nitish will help steer the company and set it on course to becoming a world class mobile gaming company. ”
An alumnus of IIM Ahmedabad and NIT Warangal, Manish has been a leading figure in the Indian gaming ecosystem andhas been biggest proponent of the quality of the Indian mobile game developers across the various mobile gaming conferences around the globe.