Is San Francisco-based mobile videogames startup Hands-On Mobile in trouble? That was my first thought on reading that it had sold its Korean unit to Electronic Arts. EA moved to buy Hands-On's closest competitor, Jamdat, in 2005, and has been aggressively expanding in cell-phone games since. Hands-On, once rumored as an IPO candidate, has a string of offices around the globe, which must surely be expensive. It's possible EA made an offer Hands-On couldn't refuse. But the fact that Hands-On is selling, not buying, speaks of strained finances.

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