Light & Wonder Acquires Australian Studio Big Ant in $340M Mobile-First Push
Las Vegas-based supplier Light & Wonder has snapped up Melbourne studio Big Ant Interactive for AUD $520 million (USD $340 million), marking its largest mobile-focused acquisition to date. The deal brings a portfolio of cross-platform sports and casual gaming IP under L&W's iGaming umbrella as the company doubles down on mobile-native content development.
Light & Wonder confirmed on Tuesday it has finalized the acquisition of Big Ant Interactive, a Melbourne-headquartered studio known for its sports simulation titles and HTML5 development pipeline. The AUD $520 million transaction, structured as a mix of cash and performance-linked equity, closes after a four-month regulatory review by the Australian Foreign Investment Review Board. Big Ant's 180-person team will be folded into L&W's digital division while retaining its Melbourne and Brisbane offices.
The acquisition reflects a broader strategic pivot at Light & Wonder following its dual listing on the ASX last year. CEO Matt Wilson told analysts on a morning briefing call that mobile-first slot and instant-win formats now account for 62% of net gaming revenue across the operator's tier-one clients, up from 48% two years ago. "Big Ant gives us a battle-tested mobile engine, an experienced live-ops team, and a foothold in adjacent verticals like sports gaming that increasingly overlap with our wagering customers," Wilson said.
Industry analysts view the move as a counterweight to recent consolidation among European suppliers and a hedge against slowing land-based cabinet sales in North America. Regulus Partners noted in a client memo that L&W's content release cadence has lagged competitors like Pragmatic Play and Relax Gaming in the past 18 months, and that the Big Ant pipeline could add 25 to 30 mobile-optimized titles annually once integration completes in early 2027. The firm also flagged potential cross-pollination opportunities with L&W's OpenGaming aggregation platform, which serves more than 300 operators globally.
Big Ant founder Ross Symons will remain as managing director of the new subsidiary, reporting to L&W digital president Jordan Levin. The studio has begun recruiting an additional 40 engineers and mathematicians in Melbourne, with first co-branded content slated for a Q3 2026 launch across regulated markets in the UK, Ontario, and New Jersey.