Tango brings Zynga’s Words with Friends into its messaging platform

Messaging app Tango announced today that it is integrating Zynga’s Words with Friends, making it easier for Tango users to play the game together within the app itself.

This is the second chat app that gaming giant Zynga is working with as it tests the mobile messaging waters. In February this year, it built Words with Friends exclusively for the Kik Platform, after it brought One Word to Kik in July last year.

Tango says the tie-up with Zynga is its first integration “with a game at this scale with millions of players.” However, it isn’t the messaging app’s first foray into games — after all it already introduced a games platform last year. Tango has been branching out to provide more services, including partnering with Spotify for music sharing and jumping on the sticker bandwagon before it became the industry standard.

For Tango users who want to play Words with Friends with fellow Tango members, download the game first and from the “Start a Game” screen, choose “Tango Friends” to select who you want to invite. If both Tango users already have the Words With Friends game installed, they can start a game from within the chat app immediately.

Tango announced last month that it raised a $280 million funding round led by Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba. Alongside the funding, it revealed that it has crossed 200 million registered users, which is double the 100 million sign-ups from the same time period last year. Tango co-founder and CTO Eric Setton also said that the service has 70 million monthly active users.

The integration of Words with Friends into Tango will likely help to engage its users more as they connect via games on a social level. However, it is also more likely to boost Zynga’s efforts in finding new fans, engagement and revenue among the chat app’s userbase.

Headline image via Tango