Reuters: Tencent wants to become Ubisoft’s largest shareholder – IT Pro – News

Chinese tech giant Tencent wants to become the largest shareholder in French game publisher Ubisoft. This is what Reuters says based on several sources. Tencent is said to have already contacted the Guillemot family, which owns 13.2% of Ubisoft.

Tencent has According to Reuters She already owns 5 percent of Ubisoft shares, but she wants to increase that percentage. For this it appears, among other things, of the French Guillemot family that founded Ubisoft in 1986 and is still today. 13.2 percent of the shares owned by the publisher. According to the International News Agency, other investors are also being contacted to buy shares.

Tencent’s initiative comes after Yves Guillemot, CEO of Ubisoft, said a few months ago that the company was open to a potential acquisition. “Ubisoft can remain independent. Our holdings are sought after by the largest global players in entertainment and technology. However, if there is an offer to buy us, the Board of Directors will of course consider it closely, bearing in mind the importance of the shareholders,” It seemed then.

Tencent wants to avoid restrictions imposed by the Chinese government on these investments, according to Reuters. Share for nine months No licenses More about games that can also generate money. Since April The licenses will be distributed again this year.

Last year, Tencent also came into conflict with the Chinese government. Tencent can then temporarily No more updating apps and games in China because they were subjected to inspections by the authorities who wanted to verify that too much personal data was not collected. Last year, the Chinese authorities also imposed new rules allowing minors to play Chinese games online for three hours a week. were the rules According to the local authorities It aims to protect the mental and physical health of children. Game companies are also required to register the real identities of underage players in China. Tencent has stated that it wants to use facial recognition for this.

Tencent The largest gaming company in the world. The Chinese tech giant has smartphone games like Honor of Kings, Clash of Clans, PUBG Mobile and Call of Duty: Mobile in its portfolio and racking up billions annually. Tencent’s gaming arm is nearly three times the size of Activision-Blizzard, the largest publisher of “traditional” games.