General: Atop the Publisher Heap

SBFord

Global games publishing giant, Tencent, recently purchased Riot Games for something in the vicinity of $400 million USD. This move has potentially put Tencent solidly in first place as the world's largest online games publisher. MMORPG.com columnist Richard Aihoshi takes a look at Riot's acquisition and the potential for more as time goes on in today's The Free Zone. Check it out and leave a comment or two when you're finished.

Notably, this brings up the very real possibility that Tencent has become the world's leading online game publisher, taking over the position Blizzard held for quite some time. Indeed, this may even have happened before the quarter in question. What's more, there are no significant reasons to think it will cede this slot any time soon; it's the top dog in what is both the largest national market and still the fastest growing, and there's opportunity aplenty to expand its small operations elsewhere... like in the regions of more interest to this site's readership, North America and Europe.

Read more of Richard Aihoshi's The Free Zone: Atop the Global Online Publisher Heap.

thamighty213

Great article Richard and it seriously wouldnt surprise me to see this or at least another Chinese company step out and venture into a western aquisition this is happening all over the world in every industry at present as China takes more strides to being the Worlds super power there is no reason gaming will be any different.

Quizzical

Trying to claim that Tencent Holdings is the world's biggest game publisher is ridiculous.  If ExxonMobil bought some random game, would they be the world's biggest game publisher?  They've got revenue that dwarfs Tencent's.

Go to Tencent's web site and you have to dig quite a bit to discover that they're involved in games at all.  That's not true of companies that focus primarily on gaming, rather than doing a bunch of other things and also happening to be involved in gaming.

Mr.Awwsome

Crap. I hope they dont mess with LoL.

RadioMaryja

i hope they do. this game is soo bad, hope they will make it even worse

 

HoN and Dota are much much better

thamighty213

Originally posted by Quizzical

Trying to claim that Tencent Holdings is the world's biggest game publisher is ridiculous.  If ExxonMobil bought some random game, would they be the world's biggest game publisher?  They've got revenue that dwarfs Tencent's.

Go to Tencent's web site and you have to dig quite a bit to discover that they're involved in games at all.  That's not true of companies that focus primarily on gaming, rather than doing a bunch of other things and also happening to be involved in gaming.

 

Vivendi are no different yet people call Activision Blizzard the largest publisher.

EndDream

Originally posted by thamighty213

Originally posted by Quizzical

Trying to claim that Tencent Holdings is the world's biggest game publisher is ridiculous.  If ExxonMobil bought some random game, would they be the world's biggest game publisher?  They've got revenue that dwarfs Tencent's.

Go to Tencent's web site and you have to dig quite a bit to discover that they're involved in games at all.  That's not true of companies that focus primarily on gaming, rather than doing a bunch of other things and also happening to be involved in gaming.

 

Vivendi are no different yet people call Activision Blizzard the largest publisher.

Thats different. Activision and Blizzards incomes/assets alone would allow them to hold that title.