The news had the effect of a bomb and illustrates Ubisoft’s difficulties. The release of the highly anticipated Assassin’s Creed: Shadows is in fact postponed by another month, to March 20. Far from being an isolated event, this announcement comes in a context of crisis at the French video game giant with the prospect of a sale to the Chinese Tech giant Tencent which is shaking up the markets. Let’s take stock.
A telephone conversation with shareholders
The site IGN reports a conference call organized by Ubisoft with investors. CEO Yves Guillemot and financial director Frederick Duguet were present to answer their questions.
In a press release, the company revealed that it had “appointed leading advisors to review and pursue various strategic and capital transformation options to extract the best value for stakeholders. This process will be overseen by the independent members of the board of directors. Ubisoft will inform the market in accordance with applicable regulations if and once a transaction materializes”.
This statement, which remains very vague, was not enough for everyone and management was questioned for more details. For example, a representative of the Morgan Stanley bank wanted to know what “the different strategic and capital-intensive options for transformation” and if that meant discussions with Tencent.
Frederick Duguet replied while remaining very cautious: “So we are currently actively exploring different options. And we can’t say more. Of course, we won’t comment on specific rumors we’ve seen in the market, but we believe there are several potential paths to generating value from Ubisoft’s assets and franchises. We will notify the market if and when a transaction materializes. »
Bankable franchises to generate value?
The rest of the discussion seems to have been in the same tone if we are to believe the information from our colleagues. According to other media, Tencent would be quite reluctant to buy Ubisoft, especially since the Guillemot family who founded the company would like to keep control.
For his part, Yves Guillemot, co-founder and CEO, remains firm: “We believe there are several potential avenues to generate value from Ubisoft’s assets and franchises”.
In the meantime, the French company is continuing its cost reduction strategy and claims to be able to reach 200 million euros by 2025 to 2026 compared to the period 2022-2023.
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