Roblox lifts annual bookings forecast as in-game spending booms; shares jump

By Zaheer Kachwala

(Reuters) -Videogame platform Roblox raised its forecast for full-year 2024 bookings on Thursday, as it continues to benefit from robust spending within its virtual worlds, sending its shares up over 17%.

Roblox's free-to-play model has been attracting significant consumer spending on its platform despite a wider slowdown in gaming activity.

The company, which primarily relies on user-generated content, also has been trying to attract older users by incorporating more mature games on its platform in an attempt to tap into a wider player base.

Daily active users (DAU), a key metric that determines engagement, grew 27% - the highest growth rate in around two years - to 88.9 million in the quarter ended Sept. 30.

Roblox's outgoing finance chief, Michael Guthrie, attributes the growth in DAUs and rise in the number of older users to improvements in the company's search and discovery algorithms and frequent content updates from top developers and their games.

"We're now matching users with content that's just more interesting and relevant to them, and we're doing that from a large and growing community of creators. That's a very powerful dynamic," Guthrie told Reuters.

Earlier this month, Roblox was the target of a short seller report by Hindenburg Research, which alleged that the gaming platform inflated metrics including user numbers, engagement, and was not a safe platform for children.

"They're short sellers with a clear agenda," Guthrie said, adding that the company "categorically rejects the implications" that Roblox is dangerous to the community or it inflates metrics.

The company reported third-quarter bookings, which represents the sale of virtual currency, of $1.13 billion, beating the average analysts' estimate of $1.02 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG.

It raised its forecast for full-year 2024 bookings to between $4.34 billion and $4.37 billion from its earlier projection of between $4.18 billion and $4.23 billion.

(Reporting by Zaheer Kachwala in Bengaluru; Editing by Vijay Kishore)

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