- Joined
- May 20, 2019
Topline: Chinese internet giant Tencent added to its massive gaming portfolio this week by attaining majority control over Helsinki-based Supercell, the studio behind Clash of Clans and Clash Royale.
Key background: The move to secure a majority stake in Supercell is a sign of further consolidation by the leading game publisher Tencent, which has a hand in many of the highest-grossing games in the industry. Its mobile game, Honour of Kings, brought in an estimated $1.3 billion in revenue, according to Nielsen’s SuperData. The company has a 48% stake in Epic Games, the developer of Fortnite, the global sensation that SuperData estimates earned $2.4 billion in 2018. It even has a minority stake in Krafton Game Union, which publishes Fortnite’s competitor, PUBG. Tencent also owns 5% stakes in blockbuster studios Ubisoft (Assassin’s Creed, Rainbow Six Siege) and Activision Blizzard (Call of Duty, World of Warcraft).
www.forbes.com
Another dev got ten cented.
- In June 2016, a Luxembourg consortium, which included Tencent, acquired an 81.4% interest in Supercell at a valuation of $10.2 billion.
- Tencent this week increased its stake in the consortium from 50% to 51.2%, spending $40 million for the additional shares.
- Founded in 2010, Supercell develops popular mobile games like Clash of Clans, which in 2018 was earning $1.5 million per day from users, according to market researcher Sensor Tower.
- However, that figure is down from a 2015 peak of $5.5 million daily, which would help explain Supercell’s year-over-year dip to revenues of $1.6 billion and profits of $635 million in 2018, as reported by the company.
Key background: The move to secure a majority stake in Supercell is a sign of further consolidation by the leading game publisher Tencent, which has a hand in many of the highest-grossing games in the industry. Its mobile game, Honour of Kings, brought in an estimated $1.3 billion in revenue, according to Nielsen’s SuperData. The company has a 48% stake in Epic Games, the developer of Fortnite, the global sensation that SuperData estimates earned $2.4 billion in 2018. It even has a minority stake in Krafton Game Union, which publishes Fortnite’s competitor, PUBG. Tencent also owns 5% stakes in blockbuster studios Ubisoft (Assassin’s Creed, Rainbow Six Siege) and Activision Blizzard (Call of Duty, World of Warcraft).
Tencent Buys Majority Stake in ‘Clash Of Clans’ Developer Supercell
Chinese Internet giant Tencent added to its massive gaming portfolio this week by attaining majority control over Helsinki-based Supercell, the studio behind Clash of Clans and Clash Royale.
Another dev got ten cented.
