According to a person familiar with the situation, China’s Tencent (0700.HK) has taken over two of ByteDance’s video game divisions after ByteDance withdrew from the gaming industry last year.
The person spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to speak to the media about the two teams Tencent has acquired: one studio located in Shenzhen, China, that is working on an action game, and another company located in East China, China, that is working on an anime game.
Reuters reached out to ByteDance and Tencent for comment, but they did not respond.
According to company database Qixin.com, the two teams have recently founded a new Shenzhen-based business called “Saluosi,” which is currently 100% owned by a Tencent investment entity.
According to a January Reuters story, ByteDance was in discussions with several potential purchasers, including Tencent, for its gaming assets.
Five years after launching its highly publicized entry into the $185 billion global video game market, ByteDance shut down the majority of its video game business in November of last year.
