Riot Games has announced that it is reorganising its presence in the Asia Pacific (APAC) region with a focus on hyper-localised publishing.
Previously Riot ran its South East Asia business out of its Singapore hub office. It also had an office in Japan. Now it will open new publishing offices in the Philippines, India, Indonesia/Malaysia, and Thailand.
To lead its publishing efforts in APAC, Riot has brought in Alex Kraynov, its previous Managing Director of Emerging Markets (Southeast Asia, India, Latin America, Brazil, Middle East, North Africa,and Japan), as the new Managing Director for APAC.
With the reorganisation Riot’s operating model will focus on Publishing alongside Games, Entertainment, Esports and Enterprise.
What Riot Has Done So Far
Riot has, in the last couple of years, launched several new titles including VALORANT, League of Legends: Wild Rift, Legends of Runeterra, as well as Riot Forge titles Ruined King and Hextech Mayhem.
Riot’s games within the League of Legends universe have garnered over 600 million players globally in the past decade.
Beyond the gaming space, Riot has also released Arcane, the Netflix animation series, as well as expanded efforts within the Riot Games Music group with the releases of royalty-free music under Riot Sessions, and virtual metal band Pentakill’s comeback EP, Lost Chapter.
Riot has also continued expanding its space within fashion, working with brands such as Uniqlo to release a collection of League of Legends UT t-shirts.
More recently, Riot also collaborated with Filipino urban streetwear brand Team Manila on an exclusive capsule collection to celebrate the launch of Neon, the first Filipino agent in its tactical shooter VALORANT.
New Offices
Since re-establishing its Singapore HQ for Southeast Asia in 2018, Riot has grown its workforce and is now doubling down on publishing in the region.
This organisational expansion translates into the establishment of local offices and hiring Country Managers in key markets such as the Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia and India, joining publishing forces with Riot’s Japan office, and enhancing its publishing hub in Singapore to over 80 people across the region.
Key departments within APAC Publishing include Country Operations, Publishing Partnerships, Brand Marketing, Growth Marketing and Services, Business Development, and Regional Tech.
On top of bringing Alex Kraynov to lead APAC Publishing, he has also appointed the following leaders within his team:
- Shinji Komiyama, Director of Country Management, APAC
- Jennifer Poulson, Head of Publishing Partnerships, APAC
- Alasdair Gray, Head of Marketing, APAC
- Derek Winder, Head of Business Development, APAC
- Yasushi Fujimoto, Country Manager of Japan
- Joel Guzman, Country Manager of the Philippines
- Resha Pradipta, Country Manager of Indonesia/Malaysia
This leadership team will continue to grow from 2022 and beyond, with a Country Manager of Thailand, Country Manager of India, and a Head of Regional Tech to be appointed.
When asked about why Indonesia and Malaysia are combined with a single office, Riot Games, director of country management, APAC, Shinji Komiyama said that things might change.
