British company Sumo Group is currently set to be acquired by Chinese conglomerate Tencent in a deal worth a whopping 1.3 billion, a new report from Reuters says.
The company has worked on some massive properties over the years, most recently working on Sackboy: A Big Adventure, Hood: Outlaws& Legends, and Team Sonic Racing. Tencent already had an 8% stake in the company but now owns 10 studies related to Sumo Group with five in England and five smaller subsidiaries spread out across Europe.
Tencent has increased the pace of its investment and M&A activity over the past year, having invested in or acquired more than 62 game companies in H1 2021.
Here is a breakdown that provides more insight: https://t.co/keTiuO4gcC
— Daniel Ahmad (@ZhugeEX) July 19, 2021
Tencent has been making investments and purchases for some time now, some of the companies investments and ownership include major companies like:
- Riot Games (100%)
- Epic Games (40%)
- Dontnod (23%)
- Activision Blizzard (5%)
- Ubisoft (5%)
- Paradox (5%)
- Bluehole (11.5%)
- Grinding Gear Games (80%)
The list of companies is much large than you think, according to this article from PC Gamer. The Sumo Group will retain its leadership once the buyout is confirmed with Carl Cavers staying on as the CEO.
“The opportunity to work with Tencent is one we just couldn’t miss,” said Cavers, who founded the company 18 years ago.
The deal comes not long after the recent acquisition of Codemasters by Electronic Arts, which purchased one of the longest-running studios in the UK for $1.2 billion this past December, overtaking Take-Two’s bid.
While the deal isn’t finalized, it looks like it will proceed. “The Board of Sumo firmly believes the business will benefit from Tencent’s broad videogaming eco-system, proven industry expertise and its strategic resources,” non-executive chairman Ian Livingstone said.
