Sydney, Australia – July 13, 2011 – Today, Ubisoft announced the acquisition of free-to-play game developer Owlient. The team at Owlient has extensive expertise in the management of online game-playing communities, and their Howrse brand has almost two million monthly active users.
Founded in Paris in 2005 Owlient, with its 40 team members is a forerunner in creating free-to-play games. The company set itself apart for its ability to develop the expertise and technology necessary to manage and entertain an online game community.
“We are thrilled to welcome the talented team at Owlient to Ubisoft. Over the last five years they have developed an architecture dedicated to delivering and monetising games as a service, as well as the skills of attracting and retaining online communities,” said Yves Guillemot, chief executive officer at Ubisoft. “This acquisition is the next step in the acceleration of Ubisoft’s free-to-play strategy following last year’s launch of Settlers Online, CSI Crime City and Heroes Kingdoms, as well as the recent beta launch of our ambitious title Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Online.”
“Joining the Ubisoft team will allow us to accelerate our international business and to expand our expertise and our games to new platforms. It also lets us integrate our proven online services architecture with Ubisoft’s so that we can help grow their brands online,” affirmed Olivier Issaly, chief executive officer of Owlient. “We are proud of what our team has accomplished and confident that joining Ubisoft will allow us to continue that success. We’d also like to thank our shareholder Innovacom, who has accompanied the Owlient team over the years as we developed.”
Following acquisitions of Massive Entertainment, Nadeo and Quazal, Owlient represents the continuation of Ubisoft’s focus on expanding its online expertise and infrastructure in order to expand its portfolio using new online business models. The recent launch of AAA project Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Online in closed beta, the enthusiasm of the TrackMania community, the success of The Settlers Online in Germany and the Uplay online services platform are the most recent realisations of this strategy.
Previous Ubisoft acquisitions in the online segment:
– November 2008: acquisition of Massive Entertainment, renowned for their specialty in creating multiplayer games. Massive is collaborating on or responsible for the development of several ambitious unannounced projects.
– October 2009: acquisition of Nadeo, creator of cult hit multiplayer driving game, TrackMania. TrackMania 2 Canyon and ManiaPlanet will be launched in 2011.
– November 2010: acquisition of Quazal, a leader in the creation of online technical solutions. Assassin’s Creed implements Quazal technology for its multiplayer mode, which received the Game Critics Award for “Best Online Game” at E3 2010.
The acquisition is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to close in Ubisoft’s second quarter of fiscal 2012.