2. Agenda
01 - About Ubisoft
02 - Is Ubisoft an MNE?
03 - Reasons for going global
04 - Benefits of being an MNE
05 - Challenges
06 - Video
07 - Conclusion
01
3. Brief History
1986 – Ubisoft is formed in France by five Guillemot
brothers to publish and distribute entertainment
software.
1989 – Ubisoft creates distribution subsidiaries in
Germany and the United States.
1992 – Creative in-house production studios
created in France and Romania. Rayman franchise
is created and literally puts Ubisoft on the map as a
developer.
02
4. Brief History
1996 – After a success with its title “Rayman,”
Ubisoft is listed on Paris Stock Exchange and a
Chinese studio is founded.
1998 – Ubisoft expands by acquisitions of
successful studios and creation of new ones like
the Montreal studio.
Today Ubisoft is now a company with world’s
largest production studio located in Montreal,
Canada and annual sales of over 680 million euros
(in 2007).
03
6. Major Developers
01 - Nintendo
02 - Electronic Arts
03 - Activision
04 -
Ubisoft
05 - THQ
06 - Take-Two Interactive
07 - Sega (USA)
08 - Sega (Japan)
09 - Microsoft
10 - Eidos
05
7. Why go multinational?
By expanding geographically Ubisoft was able to:
- Achieve higher growth and greater profits as well
as larger share of the markets.
- Attract the best talents from all over the world, to
increase its global reach accordingly.
- Take advantage of government grants and lower
costs in other countries.
06
8. Why go multinational?
By expanding geographically Ubisoft was able to:
- More efficiently transfer capital, managerial
skills, culture, technology, product design, brand
names, products and services across countries.
-To keep the average operating cost per employee
is $66,000 per year; about a third less than the
industry average, according to Ubisoft CFO Alain
Martinez.
- Produce innovative, high-quality labels and
acquire an in-depth knowledge of its consumers
and their expectations.
07
9. How the French videogame company recruits its
foreign legion:
Going Global
- Go where the talent and students are.
- Go where the competition isn’t.
- Go with the flat organizational chart.
08
10. Global success?
- Ubisoft’s strategy translated into €680 million in
2007 and growing.
- Its market share rose in all key markets, ranking
#4 worldwide.
- Also, it was ranked second leading international
publisher.
09
11. Global success?
- Ubisoft won more than 40 prestigious awards.
- Continues to grow and take advantage of
industry’s evolution.
- Projected sale for 2008 are €800 million.
10
12. Global success!
-Microsoft’s Xbox 360™ and Sony’s Playstation 3™
continue to gain ground and with their success
Ubisoft gains potential customers.
- Ubisoft seems a very compelling investment
according to various financial analysts.
- Ubisoft has amassed a number of top brands in
recent years and is one of the best publishers in
the business.
11
13. Challenges
Competition:
- Huge Budget for The "next generation" of games
- Ubisoft's cost savings a competitive advantage
- American firms profit margins at risk with
soaring labor costs
12
14. Challenges
Competition: Marketing shortcoming
- Limited Marketing efforts
- No top sellers in the United States in 2005
- Market research driving competitors like
Electronic Arts
- Low Volume sales result in poor operating
margins
13
15. Challenges
Managing its foreign labor:
- Managing young talent is crucial to the business
- Teams of 80 to 90 employees,
- with managers in a single "war room" to create a
game's core technology.
14
16. Challenges
Contingencies:
- Electronic Arts purchased an almost 20% share
of Ubisoft, which was viewed hostile.
- Ubisoft is struggling to compete with other large
publishers in the very profitable Massively
Multiplayer Online games market.
- Ubisoft constantly faces PR problems (support,
Starforce, conflict with EGM)
15
18. Conclusion
17
Ubisoft was able to benefit from becoming an MNE:
- Global reach allowed them to claim their share of
resources and markets.
- Significant financial benefits from settling in
countries where operating costs are lower.
- Possession and development of highly
successful franchises.
- Expansion into CGI animation markets with future
prospects in the movie industry.