John Schappert, formerly Zynga’s chief operating officer, founded Shiver Entertainment in December 2012. In September 2013, Nexon announced a cash equity investment for a strategic stake in the Miami-based studio, in exchange for exclusive worldwide publishing rights to Shiver’s new games across multiple products and multiple years. The investment amount was not disclosed.
What Shiver Entertainment was planning
Nexon’s September 10, 2013 announcement described Shiver as a new game studio founded by Schappert and headquartered in Miami, Florida. Shiver said it was focused on free-to-play games for PC and mobile/tablet. Those were the studio’s stated plans at the time; the announcement did not identify a specific game release.
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Schappert had previously held roles at Zynga, Electronic Arts, and Microsoft. Nexon also described him as a veteran game developer. TechCrunch reported that he had founded Tiburon Entertainment, which was later acquired by Electronic Arts. In a contemporaneous interview, Schappert described his ambition as making immersive, high-fidelity games in a free-to-play format. That was an aspiration, not evidence of a released product.
What Nexon invested and received
Nexon said it would make a cash equity investment in exchange for a strategic equity stake in Shiver. It also secured exclusive worldwide publishing rights to Shiver’s titles, with the agreement covering multiple products and multiple years. Nexon planned to nominate its CFO and CAO, Owen Mahoney, to Shiver’s board.
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The companies did not disclose the investment amount or further financial terms. TechCrunch’s September 9, 2013 report likewise said the amount was undisclosed. The available announcement therefore does not support an estimate of Shiver’s valuation, Nexon’s ownership percentage, or the value of the publishing agreement.
Why the partnership made sense to Nexon
Nexon presented the deal as a combination of its free-to-play expertise and global publishing capacity with Shiver’s Western-oriented game development. Owen Mahoney, then Nexon’s CFO and CAO, said the company was pursuing growth in key Western markets by working with developers and bringing its free-to-play capabilities to global markets.
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In the release, Schappert said Shiver was focused on creating free-to-play games and that the partnership combined Nexon’s online-game and publishing capabilities with Shiver’s Western-oriented development. These statements describe the companies’ 2013 rationale and goals, rather than demonstrated commercial results.
What Nexon said about its scale in 2013
To explain its publishing reach, Nexon’s 2013 release said it had served nearly 60 online games in more than 100 countries and recorded more than 1.4 billion player registrations since its founding. These are historical figures reported by Nexon at the time, not current operating metrics.
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What is—and is not—established afterward
The announcement and contemporaneous coverage document the investment, publishing arrangement, leadership plans, and Shiver’s stated development focus in 2013. They do not establish which games Shiver ultimately released, the commercial results of the deal, or whether the studio operates today. The deal is best understood as a historical investment and publishing agreement, not as evidence of a current company or product offering.
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