Jeff Karp has a string of successes, including work at Zynga and EA video games.
Big Fish Games hired Jeff Karp as its president and managing director and was announced as Big Fish’s new leader. Jeff Karp is a former executive at Electronic Arts (EA) and Zynga.
Jeff Karp joined Big Fish Games to head the company in the wake of its sale from Churchill Downs Inc., the Kentucky Derby operator, to Aristocrat Technologies. For the first half of 2018, Jeff Goldstein of Aristocrat Technologies had been in charge of Big Fish Games’ board of directors.
Goldstein is the chief digital officer and chief strategy officer of Aristocrat Leisure. Aristocrat placed him in the oversight position after a $990 million buyout of Big Fish Games in January 2018.
Prior to the January acquisition, Big Fish Games founder and CEO Paul Thelan had overseen the social games company. In that capacity, Thelan had been in charge since Churchill Down bought Big Fish Games for $885 million in 2014.
Jeff Karp’s Profile
Jeff Karp, who will direct Big Fish Games from Seattle, has 15 years of experience in the video games industry. He spent more than 10 years of that time at EA, where he reached the position of the EVP of EA’s Play Label. In that position, Jeff Karp oversaw successful franchises like EA Sports and The Sims.
Karp released a statement upon his appointment which said, “I am honored to be working with such a creative and talented group, who are focused on enhancing life through exceptional play. Big Fish is a content-rich company and its employees are passionate about making great games that bring joy and fun to millions of players around the world.”
Jeff Karp’s Zynga Career
During his stint at Zynga, Jeff Karp was the executive vice president and chief marketing officer of the social games site. Karp was key in the creation of popular Zynga games like Words With Friends and Draw Something.
Jeff Karp also spent a short time at GSN Games, where he served as EVP of Social and Mobile Games. Karp’s latest executive job in the industry was as CEO of Sports Illustrated Play, which has 17 million monthly users. Comcast/NBC bought Sports Illustrated Play this year. Karp left the job in January.
The new leader of Big Fish Games said he plans to manage the company’s portfolio of games, which includes Gummy Drop, Cooking Craze, and Big Fish Casino.
Big Fish Games Profile
Aristocrat’s Jeff Goldstein said of Karp’s ascension to the top of Big Fish Games, “Jeff’s expertise in growing games into global entertainment franchises is unsurpassed. His proven track record and deep experience in the games industry make him the ideal person to drive Big Fish’s growth strategy, and ensure the business delivers its full potential.”
Big Fish Games has 735 employees, including 630 based in Seattle and 105 based in Oakland, California. The company reported $466 million in net revenue in 2017, along with $80.3 million in adjusted earnings before interest, depreciation, taxes, and amortization (EBIDTA). Those numbers were down from $486.2 million and $82.2 million in EBIDTA in 2016.
Lawsuit against Big Fish Games
Not everything will be sunny for Jeff Karp. Big Fish Games is the target of a lawsuit claiming that the social gaming site is actually gambling. Players do not have to pay to play on Big Fish Games, but if they run out of virtual chips, they can pay real money to replenish their chip stack.
A customer who spent $800 on Big Fish Games sued the company, claiming their form of gaming is actually gambling, because the virtual chips represent “a thing of value”. Most though the case would not amount to much, because the definition of “a thing of value” long has meant real money, cash prizes, or the like. A judge ruled differently, which has caused a wave of similar lawsuits headed by one attorney based out of Seattle.
