Azure Dream
Member
Thanks for the personal insults, I was simply pointing out that it's not easy as "just" quit and make a new studio. That was the question I had a solid answer to, so I answered it specifically.
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CD Projekt may be preparing to defend against a hostile takeover
- Thread starter boskee
- Start date
Thanks for the personal insults, I was simply pointing out that it's not easy as "just" quit and make a new studio. That was the question I had a solid answer to, so I answered it specifically.
CarbonFire
Member
As soon as Vivendi gobbles up Ubisoft, it will be. Outside a miracle 11th hour investment from a 3rd party aligned with the Guillemots, it doesn't seem like Ubisoft has the resources to stave off the takeover.
MarineMountie
Member
You said they would have to be bought out again even if they did that. Why? I have heard nothing about financial troubles at CDPR. What is causing all of this? Again, I read the OP, I clicked on the link which took me to a foreign page that I can't read. I included asshat and douchebaggery because of your post full of sarcasm, FYI.
graywolf323
Member
Vivendi seems to like hostile takeovers so they'd be my guess
pray to God that that doesn't happen, CD Projekt would be a hollow shell of it's former self before long
pray to God that that doesn't happen, CD Projekt would be a hollow shell of it's former self before long
AndrewDean84xX
Banned
Witcher 4, Xbox One/Windows 10 Exclusive
Ultimate Edition for early weekend access for $99.99 and has play anywhere functionality. Also, The Season pass included will give you access to multiplayer maps 2 weeks earlier.
Ultimate Edition for early weekend access for $99.99 and has play anywhere functionality. Also, The Season pass included will give you access to multiplayer maps 2 weeks earlier.
Imagine if its Valve.
Azure Dream
Member
My limited amount of sarcasm ("sure is easy to") was because I found that question reductionist of the difficulty actually involved in that task. It wasn't really a jab at you, more along the lines of reminding you to think about the actual complexities involved in that particular point. You may call it picking and choosing, but I noticed that question and wanted to point out, "Hey, it's really not that simple." Flinging around insults because you decided you don't like my tone in a two sentence reply isn't really a great way to hold a conversation, however. Especially when you're apparently demanding I answer more of your questions now?
SLHellbound
Banned
All good things come to an end. They are one of the best developers out there right now. Why would it last....
MarineMountie
Member
Not demanding anything. Its obvious nobody knows the answer so I will just bow out of this thread while everyone else keeps using terms like "hostile takeover" and "bought out" without even knowing a reason as to why.
MarineMountie
Member
Thank you. I have never heard of a Hostile Takeover actually happening. Not sure how a company such as a developer would be forced to sell against their will. How that would ever hold up in any court is baffling.
RipperGrim
Member
Just Google vivendi and ubisoft.
I want CDPR to keep making games though
Who is selling against their will?
The moment you go public and put shares on the market, you are selling (a part of) your company. In a hostile takeover another company is just buying enough shares off the market to get the majority.
If you want to prevent such a thing don't go public or retain the majority (>50%) of the shares.
nicoga3000
Saint Nic
Pardon my ignorance, but what is a "hostile takeover" and what are its implications?
They already made their "3" though so it wouldn't affect anything. ;P
MarineMountie
Member
When I googled the Ubisoft/Vivendi story from Sept. 29th, I read that Ubisoft said that they would sell to a competitor before giving up to Vivendi.
If Vivendi owns a majority, how does that work?
Havn't followed the news that closely this month, but:
- Ubi is way too busy with Vivendi (Guillemot family even bought shares themselves);
- Ubi's share lost a fair bit of value since September, maybe people are closing their positions and take their gain;
- Some thinks Vivendi itself could have sold shares and took some cash back (that's not likely but maybe worth sharing the idea)
- Ubi's share value only restarted to climb yesterday, but that's because the quarter results are better than expected.
- Ubi is way too busy with Vivendi (Guillemot family even bought shares themselves);
- Ubi's share lost a fair bit of value since September, maybe people are closing their positions and take their gain;
- Some thinks Vivendi itself could have sold shares and took some cash back (that's not likely but maybe worth sharing the idea)
- Ubi's share value only restarted to climb yesterday, but that's because the quarter results are better than expected.
Vivendi does not yet own a controlling number of shares. Thus, Ubi is threatening to sell to itself to a competitor. The board and shareholders would have to approve. It is all posturing because if a competitor was interested they would have made a play for them already. It is a toothless threat because Vivendi would make money from their current position in Ubi.
Aztechnology
Member
Why does someone always have to ruin it.
Complistic
Member
Well at least we got a complete Geralt trilogy before the end.
Geralt returns 2018! Preorder for exclusive skins!
Dead_Pixel
Banned
I assume a potential hostile takeover could affect GOG too?
potatohead
Member
They get bought out and potentially new ownership changes how they do things
of course money
Yes, because it's a fully owned subsidiary of CD Projekt.
However, let me reiterate, that there's little chance of them actually being taken over. It is most likely just a step designed to protect them from such event in the future. People directly involved in the business (co-founders, board members and employees) control around 35-40% of the company. That's obviously not a majority of votes, but it makes any potential hostile takeover harder to achieve. The proposed change to the company's statue, combined with the buyback of their own shares will make it even harder. As things stand, any potential buyer would have to pay up half a billion bucks to get half of the business. That doesn't take into account the surge in stock price once they'd start buying shares. It would probably cost them much more. With the proposed change, any potential buyer, after acquiring 20% of the company, would have to pay for the remaining 80% of the stock if they were to take over, for the price that's deemed "acceptable/decent/satisfactory", which would be in multiples of the actual market value.
Badass
Every industry.
Yup, there's nothing that would indicate an actual takeover taking place at the moment. It most likely is just them thinking one step ahead (which is great).
I hope this is the case. I love them a great deal. Please keep being who you are CDPR
LoneliestGhost
Banned
As someone who has no idea about business, can anyone help explain to me why this is even happening? Didn't Witcher 3 sold like 13 millions aka super duper profits?
I'm going to do an ELI5 post, so apologies if you know half of that.
They are publicly traded, which means that everyone can buy shares in a company. There are many reasons why company may want to go public but it all basically comes down to injecting money into the business, but in exchange you give away part of the ownership. Publicly traded companies have a board that runs the business and shareholders, who own the company. Shareholders get votes that allow them to influence the business. Shareholder that controls over 50% of the shares is called a majority shareholder. Their votes allow them to pretty much make all of the decisions in the company.
Now, companies can be taken over by another company in various ways. One of them is when a potential buyer presents its buyout bid to the board, which can accept or deny the offer. If it accepts, it's called a welcome/friendly takeover. But a potential buyer doesn't have to take that route. It can also talk directly to the shareholders and buy their shares. This way it can try to become the majority shareholder without the approval of the board.This is called a hostile takeover.
Now, in the case of CD Projekt, the founders and employees control about ~35 to 40% of the shares. It means that there's no majority shareholder, and the company could potentially be taken over if someone talked to other shareholders and managed to get over 50% of the shares.
The move that CD Projekt is taking, calls for an introduction of a rule, in which shareholders that control 20% of the vote in the company or more, automatically have their vote restricted. Those restrictions will only be lifted, if that shareholder decides to buy all of the remaining shares in the company at once for a satisfactory price. In practice it means that they'll have to buy the remaining 80% in one go and for a significantly higher price than the market price.
This is oversimplified explanation, but that's the gist of it.
ForsakenLotus
Member
CDProjekt Red needs to stay independent. Please, they do God's work.
Kingpin Rogers
Member
I kind of want them to be taken over by someone like EA just to see the outrage online hehe. Maybe I'd think differently if I'd actually played more than 2 hours of the Witcher 3.
It would, since GOG is owned by CD Projekt, but once again, there's no evidence/indication that a hostile takeover is about to take place. It may very well be, that CDP management wants to strengthen company defences for any potential takeover bid in the future.
Ivory Samoan
Gold Member
Leave them alone hostile takeover.
CDPR are pretty much the only God tier dev/publisher left, hostile takeover is really starting to become a thorn in gaming's side
CDPR are pretty much the only God tier dev/publisher left, hostile takeover is really starting to become a thorn in gaming's side
RIP in pieces Bioware Polland
Futurematic
Member
hostile takeover is really starting to become a thorn in gaming's side
Starting? lol. EA in the '90s was the biggest of the buy-fuck-close publishers, but plenty of forgotten about action occurred in the 1980s & 1990s. (Gaming a few alternate universes over is amazing!)
Wild speculation: Zenimax is trying to buy CDPR, so they have someone capable to make Elder Scrolls VI.
Generalpsyduck
Banned
Its shit like this that makes me want to quit gaming.