{"id":4273,"date":"2010-06-03T16:49:32","date_gmt":"2010-06-03T16:49:32","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2015-04-21T13:23:01","modified_gmt":"2015-04-21T16:23:01","slug":"de-vuelta-al-juego","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/amchamchile.cl\/en\/noticia\/de-vuelta-al-juego\/","title":{"rendered":"De Vuelta al Juego Back in the Game"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

Una casa sin pretensiones en la comuna de Vitacura en Santiago dif\u00edcilmente corresponde a la imagen que la mayor\u00eda de la gente tiene de un lugar donde se elaboran videojuegos. No obstante, es donde se desarroll\u00f3 Freaking Inkies, uno de los \u00faltimos juegos en llegar al mercado de los iPhone.<\/p>\n

Freaking Inkies -un videojuego que consiste en disparar pintura en lugar de armas m\u00e1s crueles, el truco est\u00e1 en mezclar los colores- es el primer lanzamiento de Atakama Labs, empresa formada en agosto pasado por los empresarios argentinos Esteban Sosnik y Tiburcio de la C\u00e1rcova con el respaldo de dos fondos chilenos de capital de riesgo.<\/p>\n

El juego para iPhone es una peque\u00f1a muestra de lo que la empresa puede producir, antes de su lanzamiento en junio de un juego m\u00e1s grande para redes sociales, sostiene de la C\u00e1rcova. Durante los pr\u00f3ximos dos a\u00f1os, la firma espera desarrollar otros cuatro o cinco juegos grandes, a\u00f1ade.<\/p>\n

Atakama Labs es la segunda empresa de desarrollo de videojuegos de los dos emprendedores. Ambos unieron fuerzas por primera vez en el 2002, luego de ser presentados por conocidos mutuos, para fundar Wanako Games, la empresa que vendieron en el 2006 por US$ 10 millones al gigante de la industria Vivendi Games.<\/p>\n

No obstante, en Atakama Games, no est\u00e1n simplemente repitiendo una f\u00f3rmula probada. Es un proyecto mucho m\u00e1s ambicioso, se\u00f1ala de la C\u00e1rcova.<\/p>\n

Mientras Wanako desarroll\u00f3 videojuegos para consolas tradicionales, Atakama Labs producir\u00e1 juegos para redes sociales como Facebook. Y, al vender directamente al consumidor, en lugar de a trav\u00e9s de distribuidores, aspira a captar toda la cadena de valor y no s\u00f3lo la parte de desarrollo de los ingresos.<\/p>\n

\u201cEs un desaf\u00edo mucho m\u00e1s grande, pero tambi\u00e9n hay mucha m\u00e1s ventaja\u201d, sostiene de la C\u00e1rcova. Y, con una industria de juegos cuyo valor se estima en US$ 50.000 millones a nivel global y que crece r\u00e1pidamente, esa es una perspectiva tentadora.<\/p>\n

Para su puesta en marcha, Atakama Labs recaud\u00f3 US$ 2 millones -m\u00e1s la promesa de otros US$ 2 millones- de Austral Capital y Copec-UC, los dos fondos chilenos de capital de riesgo que poseen un poco menos del 50% de la compa\u00f1\u00eda. \u201cEso fue un verdadero logro, porque lo hicimos a mediados del 2009 en medio de toda la incertidumbre financiera\u201d, recuerda De la C\u00e1rcova.<\/p>\n

\"\"La confianza de quienes respaldan a la empresa se inspira en parte el \u00e9xito de Tiburcio de la C\u00e1rcova y Esteban Sosnik en Wanako Games, donde contaron con el respaldo de Wenceslao Casares, el empresario argentino que es un modelo a seguir para los aspirantes a empresarios en toda Am\u00e9rica Latina. \u201cNuestro historial les dio la confianza de que si ten\u00edamos una buena idea -y eso es siempre un \u2018si\u2019- tendr\u00edamos la capacidad de desarrollarla\u201d, explica de la C\u00e1rcova.<\/p>\n

No obstante, esa no fue la \u00fanica raz\u00f3n para decidirse a situar la sede de la rama de desarrollo de la empresa en Chile. En el 2002, cuando los dos socios formaron Wanako Games, los atractivos de Chile en t\u00e9rminos de estabilidad y previsibilidad eran obvios comparados con la debacle que se viv\u00eda en Argentina. \u201cPero muchas de las premisas en las que basamos esa decisi\u00f3n demostraron ser correctas\u201d, destaca el cofundador Esteban Sosnik.<\/p>\n

Al contrario de las frecuentes cr\u00edticas a los tr\u00e1mites burocr\u00e1ticos como un desincentivo para iniciar una compa\u00f1\u00eda en Chile, Sosnik se\u00f1ala que Wanako Games y Atakama Labs tuvieron una experiencia positiva. \u201cEncontramos pocas de las interferencias que pueden distraer tanto tiempo y dinero de las tareas clave involucradas en el lanzamiento de una empresa\u201d.<\/p>\n

Y, seg\u00fan de la C\u00e1rcova, tambi\u00e9n encontraron un grupo de talento interesante -\u201cm\u00e1s virgen que lo que encontramos en Estados Unidos\u201d. De las 14 personas que componen la fuerza laboral de Atakama Labs, 10 son chilenas, destaca, y Wanako -que emplea a cerca de 60 personas- se qued\u00f3 en Chile, a pesar de su venta.<\/p>\n

Pero Sosnik y de la C\u00e1rcova -quienes fueron seleccionados recientemente para recibir el respaldo de Endeavor, organizaci\u00f3n estadounidense que promueve el emprendimiento- son en s\u00ed mismos una interesante mezcla de talento. Si bien ambos nacieron en Argentina y bordean los 35 a\u00f1os, se acercaron a sus empresas de riesgo compartido desde un \u00e1ngulo muy diferente.<\/p>\n

Tiburcio de la C\u00e1rcova, quien estudi\u00f3 leyes en Argentina y Espa\u00f1a, comenz\u00f3 en el lado pr\u00e1ctico del negocio. A mediados de la d\u00e9cada de los 90, fund\u00f3 uno de los primeros proveedores de servicios de Internet de Argentina, un \u00e9xito que vendi\u00f3 \u2013prematuramente ante la insistencia de sus desorientados patrocinadores, afirma- a una empresa de telecomunicaciones, antes de pasar a fundar Collective Mind, una empresa de servicios de Internet que -como tantas de sus contempor\u00e1neas- se vio enfrentada a planes de expansi\u00f3n regional y crecimiento demasiado ambiciosos.<\/p>\n

En contraste, Sosnik ven\u00eda del lado del capital del negocio. Tras estudiar relaciones internacionales y econom\u00eda en Estados Unidos -donde est\u00e1 asentado en la actualidad como titular de la rama de marketing de Atakama Labs- se uni\u00f3 a JP Morgan.<\/p>\n

Luego, a fines de la d\u00e9cada de los 90, regres\u00f3 a Argentina para trabajar en la incipiente industria de capital de riesgo del pa\u00eds, pero pronto se dio cuenta que quer\u00eda estar m\u00e1s cerca de la acci\u00f3n. \u201cMi sue\u00f1o cuando era adolescente era tener un impacto en el mundo que me rodeaba y no hay una forma m\u00e1s r\u00e1pida y m\u00e1s transparente de hacerlo que iniciando una empresa\u201d, sostiene.<\/p>\n

Los socios son reticentes sobre las ventas -\u201cnuestra atenci\u00f3n en estos momentos est\u00e1 puesta en la investigaci\u00f3n y la formaci\u00f3n de equipo, m\u00e1s que en los ingresos\u201d, se\u00f1ala de la C\u00e1rcova. La cifra que los socios parecen tener en mente, sin embargo, se sit\u00faa en torno a los US$ 30 millones en ventas dentro de cinco a\u00f1os, principalmente en Estados Unidos y Europa.<\/p>\n

Pero tambi\u00e9n se ven como parte de un panorama m\u00e1s amplio de desarrollo de la industria de videojuegos en Chile y, de hecho, en Am\u00e9rica Latina. Wanako Games fue un pionero que sirvi\u00f3 como modelo a aseguir para otras empresas, en algunos casos creadas por ex empleados, destaca Sosnik.<\/p>\n

En ese sentido, seg\u00fan Sosnik, Wanako Games y Atakama Labs tienen un objetivo que los une. \u201cLo que los veo haciendo es servir como un puente para llevar el talento latinoamericano al mercado estadounidense\u201d, concluye.<\/p>\n

Ruth Bradley<\/strong> es corresponsal en Santiago de The Economist.<\/p>\n

An unassuming house in Santiago\u2019s Vitacura district is hardly most people\u2019s image of a place where sophisticated videogames are produced. It is, however, where Freaking Inkies, one of the latest games to hit the iPhone market, was developed.<\/P>
\n

An arcade shooter that uses paint rather than fiercer weapons – the trick is in mixing the colors – Freaking Inkies is the first launch from Atakama Labs, a company formed last August by Argentine entrepreneurs, Esteban Sosnik and Tiburcio de la C\u00e1rcova, with the backing of two Chilean venture capital funds.<\/P>
\n

The iPhone game is a small taste of what the company can produce, ahead of its June launch of a larger game for social networks, says de la C\u00e1rcova. Over the next two years, it expects to develop another four or five large games, he adds.
\u00a0
Atakama Labs is the two entrepreneurs\u2019 second venture into videogame development. They first joined forces in 2002, after being introduced by mutual acquaintances, to found Wanako Games, the company they sold in 2006 for US$10 million to industry giant Vivendi Games.<\/P>
\n

But, in Atakama Games, they are not just repeating a tried formula. It is a far more ambitious project, says de la C\u00e1rcova.<\/P>
\n

Whereas Wanako developed videogames for traditional consoles, Atakama Labs will produce games for social networks like Facebook. And, by selling directly to the consumer, rather than through distributors, it aims to capture all the value chain, not just the development end of revenues.\u00a0\u00a0<\/P>
\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a much bigger challenge,\u201d says de la C\u00e1rcova, \u201cbut there\u2019s also much more upside.\u201d And, with the gaming industry estimated to be worth US$50 billion globally and growing fast, that is an enticing prospect.<\/P>
\n

For its start-up, Atakama Labs raised US$ 2 million, plus the promise of a further US$ 2 million, from Austral Capital and Copec-UC, the two Chilean venture capital funds that hold just under a 50% stake in the company. \u201cThat was a real achievement because we did it in mid-2009 in the midst of all the financial uncertainty,\u201d recalls de la C\u00e1rcova.<\/P>
\n

\"\"The confidence of the company\u2019s backers was inspired partly by his and Sosnik\u2019s success in Wanako Games where they were backed by Wenceslao Casares, the Argentine entrepreneur who is a role model for aspiring entrepreneurs around Latin America. \u201cOur track record gave them the confidence that, if we had a good idea – and that\u2019s always an \u2018if\u2019 – we would have the capacity to develop it,\u201d explains de la C\u00e1rcova.<\/P>
\n

But that was not the only reason for deciding to base the development arm of the company in Chile. In 2002, when the two partners formed Wanako Games, Chile\u2019s attractions in terms of stability and predictability were obvious compared with the meltdown in Argentina. \u201cBut a lot of the premises on which we based that decision proved right,\u201d notes co-founder Esteban Sosnik.<\/P>
\n

Contrary to frequent criticism of bureaucratic red tape as a disincentive for starting a company in Chile, he says that Wanako Games and Atakama Labs had a positive experience. \u201cWe found few of the disturbances that can distract so much time and money from the key tasks involved in launching a company.\u201d<\/P>
\n

And, according to de la C\u00e1rcova, they also found an interesting pool of talent – \u201cmore virgin than we could have found in the United States\u201d. Out of the 14-strong workforce at Atakama Labs, ten are Chileans, he points out, and Wanako, which employs around 60 people, has remained in Chile, despite its sale.<\/P>
\n

But Sosnik and de la C\u00e1rcova, who were recently selected for support from Endeavor, a U.S.-based organization that promotes entrepreneurship, are themselves an interesting mix of talent. Although both born in Argentina and in their mid-30s, they approached their joint ventures from a very different angle.<\/P>
\n

De la C\u00e1rcova, who studied law in Argentina and Spain, started at the hands-on end of the business. In the mid-1990s, he founded one of Argentina\u2019s first Internet service providers, a success that was sold – prematurely on the insistence of its misguided backers, he says – to a telecommunications company, before going on to found Collective Mind, an Internet services company that, like so many of its contemporaries, fell foul of over-ambitious growth and regional expansion plans.\u00a0<\/P>
\n

Sosnik, by comparison, came from the money end of the business. After studying international relations and economics in the United States – where he is currently based as the head of Atakama Labs\u2019 marketing arm – he joined JP Morgan.<\/P>
\n

Then, in the late 1990s, he returned to Argentina to work in its incipient venture capital industry, but soon realized he wanted to be closer to the action. \u201cMy dream from my teenage years was to have an impact on the world around me and there\u2019s no faster, more transparent way of doing that than to start a company,\u201d he says.<\/P>
\n

The partners are reticent about sales – \u201cour focus at this stage is on research and team building, rather than revenues,\u201d says de la C\u00e1rcova. The figure the partners appear to have in mind, however, is around US$30 million in sales within five years, mostly in the United States and Europe.<\/P>
\n

But they also see themselves as part of a broader picture of the development of the videogames industry in Chile and, indeed, Latin America. Wanako Games was a pioneer that has served as a role model for other companies, in some cases created by former employees, points out Sosnik.<\/P>
\n

In that sense, according to Sosnik, Wanako Games and Atakama Labs have a unifying aim. \u201cWhat I see them as doing is serving as a bridge for taking Latin American talent to the U.S. market,\u201d he concludes.<\/P>
\n

Ruth Bradley<\/STRONG> is the Santiago correspondent of The Economist.<\/P><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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