Ubisoft calls its partnership with Tencent "one of the biggest publishing deals ever" as it releases Q1 results

Ubisoft has published a report for the first fiscal quarter ended June 30. The publisher has seen a drop in sales, but it remains confident about its future, betting on its IP and upcoming mobile games.

Assassin’s Creed Codename Jade

• In the first quarter of FY24, Ubisoft reached €288.9 million in revenue, down 9.2% year-over-year.
• Net bookings were €267.7 million, down 8.7% year-over-year (but above the €240 million target).
• Player recurring investment (in-game purchases, DLC, subscriptions, season passes, and ads) accounted for 47.6% of total net bookings.
• Almost 92% of net bookings came from back-catalog games.
• In the second quarter (ending September 30), Ubisoft expects net bookings of €350 million.
• For the full fiscal year (ending March 31, 2024), the company targets operating income of €400 million.
• “We are confident that our sharp focus on our biggest opportunities coupled with significant cost reductions will result in meaningful progression of revenue, earnings and cash-flow generation over the coming years,” Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot said in a statement.

• Ubisoft’s pipeline for FY24 includes games like Assassin’s Creed Mirage, Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, Skull and Bones, The Crew Motorfest, and Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown.
• Rainbow Six Siege net bookings and daily active users in the first quarter grew double digits year-over-year, though Ubisoft didn’t disclose the exact numbers.
• Assassin’s Creed Codename Jade, a mobile game expected to launch in a closed beta on August 3, will be published by Tencent’s subsidiary Level Infinite. Ubisoft called it “one of the biggest publishing deals ever signed in the industry.”
• It seems that Jade will be released through a similar licensing agreement as Call of Duty: Mobile, where revenues are split between IP owner Activision and developer TiMi Studio (Tencent).
• “It is another positive step in the long-term strategic relationship between Tencent and Ubisoft,” the company said, referring to last year’s deal in which Tencent acquired a 50% stake in Guillemot Brothers Limited (owned by Ubisoft’s founders).
• It is worth noting that Level Infinite is also working on The Division Resurgence, another mobile title based on Ubisoft’s intellectual property.
• On top of that, the French company is preparing for the global launch of Rainbow Six Mobile, a mobile tactical shooter developed by Ubisoft Montreal.