FILE PHOTO: The Roblox logo is displayed on a banner, to celebrate the company's IPO, on the front facade of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, U.S., March 10, 2021. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo
(Reuters) -Roblox launched a licensing feature on its videogame platform on Tuesday, allowing intellectual property holders to integrate their characters and worlds into its games.
It has signed licensing partnerships with companies such as Netflix, which would allow developers to use characters and names from the streaming giant's popular shows "Stranger Things" and "Squid Game" in their games.
Other licensing partners include Lionsgate, Sega and Japanese publisher Kodansha.
Roblox has been aggressively trying to grab a larger share of the videogame market and expand its revenue sources by diversifying beyond gaming and turning the platform into a hub for socializing, commerce and advertising.
Introducing a platform for licensing property with popular characters and names from highly recognizable media could draw more people to its games, which appeal to a large cohort of Gen Z users.
"We have a goal to have 10% of all gaming content revenue flowing through the Roblox ecosystem and benefiting our community," said Manuel Bronstein, chief product officer at Roblox.
"This will require having a wide range of experiences and giving creators the opportunity to partner with rights holders of the most recognizable IP," he said.
Roblox had previously worked with media companies such as Warner Bros Discovery, launching special advertising campaigns and games around a specific property to drive consumer engagement.
The License Manager would enable rights holders to register and create licenses, offering them quickly to creators in days or hours rather than months, Roblox said.
The company also plans to onboard more IP holders throughout the year and aims to open the License Manager to all eligible IP holders in the coming months. It is even exploring additional license types.
(Reporting by Zaheer Kachwala in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar)
