Ubisoft stock jumps again as Tencent and Guillemot negotiate buyout

Daniel Sims

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In brief: As investors search for ways to stabilize Ubisoft following years of poor financial performance, buyout talks with major shareholder Tencent are progressing. Although multiple options are on the table, the founding Guillemot family struggles to retain control of the company.

Anonymous sources have told Reuters that multiple investors, including Tencent, are discussing options for funding a buyout of Ubisoft. The Guillemot family wishes to retain control over the company, but Tencent wants more decision-making power.

People familiar with the matter say the Chinese media giant wants further control over Ubisoft's financing if it backs the deal. However, the Guillemot brothers, who founded the company and retain the controlling share – 20.5 percent – haven't agreed to the terms. Tencent is patiently waiting for the family to come around.

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Although the company wants to avoid a hostile takeover of Ubisoft, it still hasn't decided whether to increase its 9.2 percent stake in the game publisher or its 49.9 percent ownership of Guillemot Brothers Ltd – the Guillemots' holding company.

Ubisoft's stock closed 13 percent up following news of continuing buyout discussions. Prior reports of negotiations caused a record-breaking one-day spike of over 30 percent. Although Ubisoft attempted to downplay excitement by saying it examines buyout proposals regularly, the developments could be sorely needed given the publishers' recent steep decline.

Unfortunately, the years following the pandemic have wiped out a decade of Ubisoft's stock gains. The company has struggled to develop and ship ever-larger games, and its recent releases haven't met market expectations.

After announcing plans to shut down the free-to-play online shooter XDefiant next year, Ubisoft closed its San Francisco and Osaka studios and laid off almost 300 employees. The game's failure adds to the publisher's troublesome year after Star Wars Outlaws suffered a lukewarm reception and Assassin's Creed Shadows got pushed into next year.

Additionally, Ubisoft stoked controversy and attracted a lawsuit after shutting down servers for The Crew and pulling the game from users' libraries. Charging $70 on top of microtransactions for Skull and Bones, which spent around seven years in development, also drew ire.

Despite the setbacks, Ubisoft remains committed to releasing more live-service games. A buyout isn't the only solution the Guillemots are discussing to stabilize the company. Shareholders, including AJ Investments, have proposed privatization or acquisition by a strategic investor.

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What’s there to spend money buying a game company where none of the IPs are making money? To add on to the insult, the owners that drove the company to the ground still have the cheek to ask for funding while keeping them. Tencent should just walk away from this meaningless deal.
 
Haven't paid money for anything Ubisoft related for maybe 20 years. I forget the original reason behind it but think it was pc activation limit/DRM related. Their Uplay sign up bollocks reinforced my own personal ban on them. I'm now even LESS likely to buy anything with Tencent involved.
They're not exactly moving forward, in my mind anyway.
 
What’s there to spend money buying a game company where none of the IPs are making money? To add on to the insult, the owners that drove the company to the ground still have the cheek to ask for funding while keeping them. Tencent should just walk away from this meaningless deal.
The IPs are worth money. Tencent probably figures they can work to get control of said IP then ditch all the useless management.
I'd rather not have to install a rootkit disguised as anticheat to keep playing Siege :/
You mean battleye? They already have that.
 
The chances of Assassins Creed: Shadows being any good are pretty low.

They delayed it but what can really be done in 3-4 months? It’ll probably flop even harder than Star Wars: Outlaws.
 
The chances of Assassins Creed: Shadows being any good are pretty low.

They delayed it but what can really be done in 3-4 months? It’ll probably flop even harder than Star Wars: Outlaws.
Regardless of whether it does better or worst than Starwars, I do think that it won’t sell well to turn the company around.
 
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