Google discussed approaching Tencent with a view to buy Epic Games, court documents have revealed.
As first reported by Protocol yesterday on August 19, newly-released court documents in the ongoing Epic Games vs Google antitrust case have revealed internal conversations at Google surrounding the former company. According to these documents, a senior Google executive suggested that the company approach Chinese gaming conglomerate Tencent to completely take over Epic Games, buying out the company with a 100% majority stake.
Alternatively, another idea suggested by this senior Google executive was that Google could acquire Tencent's shares in Epic Games to gain more control over the latter company. Currently, Tencent holds a 40% minority stake in Epic Games, which it purchased all the way back in 2012, while Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney still controls the company through a majority stake.
- Ubisoft "won't comment" on reports of Tencent buyout, only says it's "exploring different options" and "will inform the market if and when a transaction materializes"
- Marvel Snap is also down due to today in a "surprise" bit of collateral damage amid the TikTok ban, probably because they're both owned by the same company
Obviously, neither of these options presented by the Google executive ever materialized into solid plans. In fact, as Protocol reported yesterday, these documents were actually filed back in July, but became available to the public yesterday when Judge James Donato denied Google's attempts to keep the documents sealed.
Of course, the antitrust case between Epic Games and Google rolls on. Fortnite was originally removed from the Google Play Store, alongside the Apple App Store, all the way back in August 2020, when Epic attempted to circumvent the transaction fees of both storefronts by giving Fortnite players the option to purchase in-game V-Bucks directly from Epic.
You can head over to our Epic vs Apple lawsuit explainer for everything you need to know about the ongoing case between the two tech giants.
