Curse moves into console game community news with acquisition of FutHead.com (exclusive)

Curse, one of the biggest online gaming community news sites, has moved into the console news market with the acquisition of FutHead.com, the site for fans of Electronic Arts’ FIFA soccer games. Curse paid $1.1 million for the site.

The company told GamesBeat that the acquisition will help expand the company’s audience at a time when the consoles are about to make a comeback with the introduction of the upcoming PlayStation 4 and the Xbox One.

Last month, FutHead.com attracted more than 1.5 million unique visitors and more than 144 million page views. The addition of the FutHead site brings Curse’s total number of unique visitors to more than 40 million per month on a global basis.

Hubert Thieblot, chief executive and founder of Huntsville, Ala.-based Curse, has the goal of providing more web sites and products in support of the next generation of consoles.

Above: Curse’s user growth

Image Credit: Curse

“In the future, we want to focus on providing the best resources for gamers regardless of the type of game they play or the platform they choose to enjoy the game on,” Thieblot said. “We understand that a great game is a great game on any platform. Our acquisition of FutHead.com demonstrates our commitment to expand our offerings to support the new generation of consoles and games in addition to online games.”

He added, “As a company that was created by gamers, Curse will be continue to be at the forefront of the industry and will strive to create the best sites and products available. We are excited to expand our brand into the console market space, and support a new segment of game enthusiasts.”

FutHead.com founders, Chris Conover and Dan Paulson, will join Curse, as sports product managers and continue to oversee the site.

“Both Dan and I are happy that Futhead and Curse have joined forces because it allows us to focus on the community while at the same time leveraging Curse’s resources and experience in the wider gaming world,” Conover said.

Curse was founded in Paris in 2006 and it has more than 50 gaming web sites with more than 1 billion page views a month. The company has a desktop app, the Curse Client, with more than three million active users.

In 2007, Curse raised its first $5 million in two rounds of financing. In 2009, it raised another $6 million. The company moved its headquarters to San Francisco in 2009 and it has grown more than 500 percent since that time. Revenues are expected to top $22 million in 2013.

Above: Curse revenue growth

Image Credit: Curse