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Vivendi Purchases More Ubisoft Stock, Reportedly Seeks Board Seats
Vivendi is making a play for seats on Ubisoft’s board. Following acquisition of 6.6 percent of Ubisoft stock earlier this month, the former Activision parent has deepened its investment.
That stake is now 10.4 percent, after another acquisition. At the same time, Vivendi increased its hold on Gameloft (also owned by the family of Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot) from 6.2 percent to 10.2 percent.
The total investment is now valued at €438 million ($496 million). According to Bloomberg, Vivendi has signaled that it will be seeking seats on the companies’ boards and may further increase its investment in both.
Up until 2013, Vivendi owned Activision Blizzard. A payout of $8 billion from corporate coffers and an investor group led by Activision leadership freed the company.
We've reached out to Ubisoft to find out if there is any further reaction to this development. We'll update should we receive a response.
[Source: Bloomberg]
Our Take
Yesterday, Ubisoft labeled the investment as “unsolicited” with additional color added from emails calling the stock purchase “unwanted.” Today, Vivendi seems to have shot back with an action that speaks louder than words. Ubisoft and Gameloft are likely to start initiating protective measures to safeguard from a hostile takeover.
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