For the past couple of years now, you might have heard that Vivendi is looking to perform some kind of hostile takeover over Ubisoft – a move that’s been frowned upon considering how it hasn’t done the greatest video game business in the past. But the publisher has been fighting back to retain its independence, and the company’s CEO Yves Guillemot, recently stated that it has some support for a number of shareholders.
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During its annual meeting before the weekend, the shareholders managed to approve the renewal of several Board of Director positions, while at the same time adding some company-nominated independent directors, Corinne Fernandez-Handelsman and Virginie Haas, to the fold, meaning that it has more support than ever to stop Vivendi from taking over.
The reason for this is the majority of independent members that are on board, according to GamesIndustry International. It makes it tougher for Vivendi to try and take over the business, even though it currently sits at a 27 percent capital share for Ubisoft as a whole.
So this stands as good news – and while the battle isn’t over, Ubisoft certainly has ammunition now.
Guillemot made the following statement regarding the moves: “We are delighted with the massive support of shareholders, which strengthens our determination and ability to defend the interests of all shareholders, and to pursue our strategy of growth and value creation. Ubisoft consolidates its position in the industry among the world’s leading video game and entertainment companies.”
It certainly has a big line-up of games coming our way over the next few months, including South Park: The Fractured But Whole, Assassin’s Creed Origins, The Crew 2 and Far Cry 5 – something it probably couldn’t get under Vivendi. “In our industry, independence is needed to take risks, to be innovative,” said Guillemot, speaking with Bloomberg. “That is not compatible with Vivendi’s way of operating.”
We wish Ubisoft the best of luck in retaining its independence, because we certainly like them the way they are now. And with big sequels and other games on the way, honestly, who wouldn’t? (Besides Vivendi, obviously.)
We’ll see what happens over the next few months!
