Vivendi has moved even closer to finally owning Gameloft. After months of slowly collecting stock, Vivendi triggered an automatic takeover bid where they would offer current stockholders a buyout bid. For awhile, the Guillmot family, who founded and own Gameloft and Ubisoft, denounced Vivendi’s attempts and vowed to deny them their takeover. That didn’t work.
Vivendi was able to come to an agreement with fellow Gameloft stockholder Amber Capital, who will sell some or all of their 14.6%. This will make Vivendi the majority stakeholder in Gameloft, despite the Guillmot’s objections.
You may also recall that Vivendi is actively buying up Ubisoft stock, but at this time is still hovering around 17%, short of the 30% required by French law to trigger any takeover bid. The Guillmot’s have been even more vocal and active securing their control of Ubisoft in case Vivendi attempts another hostile takeover.
Vivendi is no stranger to video games. In addition to once having their own games publishing arm, they also owned Activision less than a decade ago. No telling what direction Vivendi will take Gameloft, but the Vivendi era of Activision isn’t looked back upon fondly.
