Tencent and Ubisoft’s founding Guillemot family are reportedly exploring a full buyout option among other possibilities, according to Bloomberg News. Following this report, Ubisoft shares soared by 33%. Just last week, Ubisoft delayed the release of its much-anticipated “Assassin’s Creed Shadows” by three months.

The Bloomberg report highlighted that Tencent and the Guillemot family, both minority shareholders in Ubisoft, are considering a full takeover after Ubisoft lost more than half its market value in 2024.

Ubisoft shares jumped by 33.5% by the market close on Friday after the report was published.

Ubisoft declined to comment on the news, and Tencent was unavailable for immediate comment when contacted by CNBC on Friday.

The European gaming titan, best known for its highly successful “Assassin’s Creed” franchise, has faced growing uncertainty as investors voice concerns about the lack of high-profile AAA titles and overall management issues.

Last week, Ubisoft announced it would delay the release of the next “Assassin’s Creed Shadows” game by three months, pushing the launch to February 14, 2025. The company also revised its 2025 fiscal year net bookings guidance to approximately €1.95 billion, down from the €2.32 billion reported in 2024.

Tencent, which holds roughly a 10% stake in Ubisoft, is one of China’s largest tech giants, known for its dominance in the gaming market. The company is behind the wildly popular multiplayer online game “Honor of Kings,” which is published by its TiMi Studio Group.

Activist Pressure

Speculation over a potential takeover comes as Ubisoft shares are trading at decade lows. Last week, AJ Investments, an activist investor with a less than 1% stake in Ubisoft, said it had amassed the support of 10% of Ubisoft’s shareholder base to push for changes at the company.

In an open letter last Thursday, the private equity firm said it had engaged “industry experts” as potential replacements for the current Ubisoft management to realize a turnaround strategy at Ubisoft. It called for Ubisoft to sell itself to private equity groups or Tencent.

Following Ubisoft’s guidance cut and a performance in the second quarter that “fell short” of the company’s expectations, CEO Yves Guillemot announced that the firm’s executive committee would launch a review to “further improve” execution.

Along with delays to its premier title, Ubisoft is also grappling with a games industry-wide slump. The global games market is set to grow only 2.1% year-over-year in 2024, according to research firm Newzoo — nowhere near the surging growth levels witnessed during the 2020 and 2021 Covid-19 pandemic years.

James Lockyer, technology research analyst at U.K. investment bank Peel Hunt, told CNBC earlier this week that part of the problem for game publishers today is that gamers are devoting more of their time to older games than to newer titles.

“More choice plus a cost-of-living squeezed wallet has meant consumers’ cash has been spread more thinly, leading to revenues and ROIs [return on investment] of those games often coming out below expectations,” Lockyer told CNBC via email.

Forrás: CNBC