Key things
- Ubisoft may be bought by Tencent and the founding Guillemot family due to recent commercial disputes.
- Some have called for Ubisoft to go private, while others have suggested that current Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot step down.
- Despite mostly positive reviews, Star Wars Outlaws has fallen short of sales expectations, and the delay of Assassin's Creed Shadows until 2025 has only added to Ubisoft's current woes.
Tencent and the Guillemot family may be buying Ubisoft following the publisher's recent commercial difficulties. The Guillemots originally founded Ubisoft in the late 1980s, although the company was originally called “Ubi Soft”. It originally published PC titles and licensed handheld games for the most part until 1995, when it had great success with the original. Rayman on PlayStation. Since then, Ubisoft has grown into one of the biggest publishers in the industry, backed by major franchises such as Splinter Cell, Assassin's Creedand Prince of Persia.
Unfortunately, the last few years have not been so fruitful for Ubisoft as the company has been hit with numerous controversies and lackluster releases. Star Wars Outlawswhich opened to warm reviews back in August, ended up falling short of Ubisoft's sales expectations so much that the company's stock fell to a 10-year low shortly after its release. The trouble would only continue from there Assassin's Creed Shadowsonce scheduled to launch on November 15, it was recently pushed back to February 14, 2025 after much controversy.
There have been calls from investors to take Ubisoft private in the face of these critical and commercial setbacks, and now it looks like the company may soon be bought out. According to unnamed sources who spoke to Bloomberg, Tencent Holdings Ltd. and the founding Guillemot family of Ubisoft Entertainment SA are considering buying out the publisher as a way to stabilize its market value. Tencent and the Guillemot family are also considering other options, and representatives of both estates have so far declined to comment on the matter.
Ubisoft founder Guillemot Family may buy the company
Earlier this year, AJ Investments' Juraj Krupa wrote a letter recommending that Ubisoft go private for the first time since 1996 amid falling shares, and others suggested that current Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot step down as part of the necessary course. repair. Other recommendations made over the past month included downsizing, which would lead to even more layoffs at Ubisoft, as well as refocusing on big-name IPs such as Rainbow Six Siege, Assassin's Creedand Watch Dogs.
According to a recent financial report, Ubisoft's shares are up roughly 33% in Paris since news of a potential buyout by the Guillemot family and an increasingly active Tencent first emerged, the company's steepest gain since 1996. It's too early for that. say if this Ubisoft the buyout will happen, but many seem to agree that a change is needed for the struggling triple-A publisher.
Ubisoft
Ubisoft is a well-known video game developer and publisher headquartered in Saint-Mandé, France. Current CEO Yves Guillemot manages a number of teams responsible for some of the most iconic and iconic franchises in video games, with franchises such as Assassin's Creed, Farcry, The Crew, Just Dance and more. Ubisoft also acts as the parent company for a number of other video game developers, including names like Massive Entertainment, Ubisoft Paris, Blue Mammoth Games, Red Storm Entertainment, and more.
- Date of establishment
- March 28, 1986
- Headquarters
- Saint Mande, France
- CEO
- Yves Guillemot
