It has been profitable since, a fact that analysts put down to its ability to persuade players to pay several times over to continue the same game. King was set up in Sweden a decade ago by friends working at the same tech startup and got 34 million euros funding from Apax Partners and Index Ventures in 2005.

Media reports now talk about an IPO valuation of $5 billion after a source recently said the company had filed to go public in the United States. Though the company does not publish numbers, industry experts have estimated its revenues at $1 million-$3 million a day. King’s focus on the multi-billion dollar mobile games market - creating short, addictive puzzles for the fastest-growing part of the gaming industry - has helped it reap profits rare in its field.

But its stunning profitability in an industry littered with firms who failed to make money from popular games has made it a totem for others seeking to emulate its success. King is the latest among European tech firms like Rovio, creator of mega-hit Angry Birds, and Mojang, behind Minecraft, to make it big on the global gaming scene.

Co-founder and Chief Creative Officer of Sebastian Knutsson pose for media in this undated handout photograph taken and released by in Stockholm.

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