Ubisoft has created a modern subsidiary dedicated to the three largest IPS, bringing a mass investment from the Chinese conglomerate of Tencent to have about 25% minority shares in the amount of EUR 1.16 billion – a subsidiary worth EUR 4 billion by Ubisoft.
This movement will jump out of Franchise Assassin’s Creed, Rainbow Six and Far Cry, thanks to this business unit a modern house for Ubisoft teams in Montréal, Quebec, Sherbrooke, Saguenay, Barcelona and Sofia. The modern subsidiary will control every game from these series in the rear catalog, as well as all modern games that are in the future.
This movement is in line with the constant stream of reports that Ubisoft was looking for this innovative way of collecting fresh funds and investments, without transferring the property of Ubisoft himself.
“Today Ubisoft opens a new chapter in its history,” wrote Yves Guillemot, CEO of Ubisoft. “When we accelerate the company’s transformation, this is a fundamental step in changing the Ubisoft operating model, which will allow us to be agile and ambitious. We focus on building strong ecosystems of games designed to become eternally green, developing high -performance brands and creating new IPS powered by the latest and emerging technologies.”
He continues: “Together with the creation of a dedicated subsidiary, which will manage the development of our three largest franchises and the implementation of Tencent as a minority investor, we crystallize the value of our assets, strengthening our balance and creates the best conditions for long -term growth and successes of these franchises.
You were forgiven you to read this and wonder: “Why didn’t you try it before?” To be candid, the main factor is probably the part of “strengthening our balance” thanks to the financing of Tencent. Ubisoft had many ups and in the last few years with some shameful failures, such as Skull and Bones, Xdefiant and Gwiez wars Outlaws – some failures and other Ubisoft pressure have joined many companies introducing mass release. Assassin’s Creed Shadows is the main hit, fortunately, already selling millions of copies and a much larger clip than Banity, and this summer there is a main change of Rainbow Six Siege, aimed at strengthening the audience of this game into a predictable future.
This investment agreement has many provisions that mean that Tencent is closed for at least 5 years with these shares to prevent them from exerting pressure on Ubisoft or a subsidiary, trying to withdraw-although it is disputable if Ubisoft does not have a majority share in a subsidiary. In this regard, Ubisoft must have a majority share in the period of 2 years.
Source: Ubisoft
