Last week Vivendi bought some shares in Ubisoft and Gameloft. After the French company sold off most of their stake in Activision Blizzard two years ago (as of June Vivendi owned 5.7% in Activision Blizzard), Vivendi are obviously in the mood to expand their presence in the games industry again.
Now they've moved ahead and bought even more shares. Vivendi now owns 10.39 percent of Ubisoft and 10.20 percent of Gameloft. Vivendi have announced that they may look to having some presence on the boards of both companies.
Ubisoft's Yves Guillemot was quick to respond as Gamesindustry.biz reports. CEO Guillemot reassured staff about the "unwelcome" Vivendi share purchase:
"We're going to fight to preserve our independence. We should not let this situation - nor any future actions by Vivendi or others - distract us from our goals. Our best defence is to stay focused on what we have always done best - deliver the most original and memorable gaming experiences."
The unsolicited investment has seen Ubisoft's shares rise in value, and the company has increased its value since the start of the year by 67 percent.