Joystiq http://www.joystiq.com Joystiq http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/http://www.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif Joystiq http://www.joystiq.com en-us Copyright 2013 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[IGN acquired by Ziff Davis]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2013/02/04/ign-acquired-by-ziff-davis/http://www.joystiq.com/2013/02/04/ign-acquired-by-ziff-davis/http://www.joystiq.com/2013/02/04/ign-acquired-by-ziff-davis/#comments IGN acquired by Ziff Davis IGN and its related sites have been acquired by j2 Global through its Ziff Davis subsidiary. Although the sale price was undisclosed, Bloomberg cites sources who claim it was less than the $100 million News Corp was asking for the bundle. Ziff Davis will now take over IGN, UGO, 1UP and AskMen.com. According to j2, these sites have over 600 advertisers and 53 million global monthly unique visitors.

The historical context for all this gets crazy and incestuous, so strap in, we'll try to make this easy. The zombie Ziff Davis at the heart of this current deal was acquired by j2 Global for $167 million in late 2012, after Ziff's years of financial difficulty and bankruptcy.

The incarnation of Ziff Davis that game industry watchers probably remember is the one that once upon a time ran 1UP and EGM. Those properties were sold in 2009 to the Hearst corporation, which had also acquired UGO earlier. This led to the death of EGM and reinterpretation of 1UP.

Two years later, News Corp., which owned IGN, took over the Hearst properties and, thusly, the former Ziff Davis site 1UP and Hearst's UGO.

So, now, here we are, with the reincarnated Ziff Davis taking over IGN. We think we got all that right.

JoystiqIGN acquired by Ziff Davis originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 04 Feb 2013 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>1upacqusitionignj2ugoMon, 04 Feb 2013 10:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Starbreeze attempting acquisition of Payday: The Heist studio]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2012/04/19/starbreeze-attempting-acquisition-of-payday-the-heist-studio/http://www.joystiq.com/2012/04/19/starbreeze-attempting-acquisition-of-payday-the-heist-studio/http://www.joystiq.com/2012/04/19/starbreeze-attempting-acquisition-of-payday-the-heist-studio/#comments Starbreeze, the Swedish studio that brought the world the surprise hit Chronicles of Riddick and the recent reboot of Syndicate, is attempting an acquisition of Payday: The Heist studio Overkill Software. Pending approval by Starbreeze's shareholders, the move will see Overkill's IP (including Payday) and staff become part of Starbreeze's stable.

Beyond the acquisition of IP and staff, Overkill is set to establish a new Starbreeze office based out of Stockholm, Sweden. "Starbreeze has graphical emphasis, and Overkill has total focus on innovative gameplay. Together we form a unique constellation of creative forces," Overkill creative director Ulf Andersson said of the acquisition in a press release.

Overkill Software was formed in the ashes of former third-party mega studio Grin Software back in 2009, after it collapsed following several commercially unsuccessful projects. Brothers Bo and Ulf Andersson started Overkill, and it's unclear how their roles will change (if at all) in the new setup. The acquisition - if approved by Starbreeze's shareholders - is set to go into effect in mid-June.

Continue reading Starbreeze attempting acquisition of Payday: The Heist studio

JoystiqStarbreeze attempting acquisition of Payday: The Heist studio originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 19 Apr 2012 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>acqusitioncold-mercuryoverkilloverkill-softwarep13payday-the-heiststarbreezestarbreeze-studiosswedenThu, 19 Apr 2012 10:30:00 EST<![CDATA[Trials HD dev acquired by Ubisoft for undisclosed amount]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2011/11/02/trials-hd-dev-acquired-by-ubisoft-for-undisclosed-amount/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/11/02/trials-hd-dev-acquired-by-ubisoft-for-undisclosed-amount/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/11/02/trials-hd-dev-acquired-by-ubisoft-for-undisclosed-amount/#comments Wildly successful indie developer RedLynx is now a part of French mega-publisher Ubisoft. RedLynx announced the acquisition this morning (evening for the Finland-based outfit) via its forums, where company CEO Rero Virtala explained the decision. "We were attracted by Ubisoft's focus on creativity and quality," he said, also pointing to the publisher's "long-term strategy on both the traditional and digital distribution video game markets."

Ubisoft has been pushing quality digital titles hard over the last year, with everything from unique one-offs like Outland and From Dust to re-releases of classics like TMNT, Prince of Persia, and Beyond Good & Evil HD. The publisher was no doubt attracted to RedLynx's massively popular Trials series, which is set to receive a sequel in the coming months.

JoystiqTrials HD dev acquired by Ubisoft for undisclosed amount originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 02 Nov 2011 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>acqusitioniosipadiphonemicrosoftmobilenintendoredlynxtrials-evolutiontrials-hdubisoftwiixboxWed, 02 Nov 2011 13:00:00 EST