Embracer Group is slicing itself in half, resulting in two legally distinct public companies. The split, which is set to take place next year, could potentially provide a lifeline for many of the intellectual properties currently in hibernation under Embracer’s umbrella.
This news come courtesy of an official announcement on Embracer’s website. One of these new corporations, dubbed Fellowship Entertainment, will retain control over many of Embracer’s largest IPs including Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit, Tomb Raider, and other key IPs owned by Embracer.
Fellowship Entertainment will also include an IP licensing department, which will focus on finding external partners to work with on some of these franchises. In addition, a portion of Embracer Group’s studios will be brought in under Fellowship Entertainment, including Deux Ex’s Eidos Montreal and Kingdom Come Deliverance’s Warhorse Studios.
Meanwhile, the second public company will retain the name Embracer, and will contain companies that are: “Entrepreneurially managed companies with deep heritage,” according to the announcement post. These include Aspyr, Limited Run Games, Plaion, and more.
Phil Rogers, CEO of Embracer Group, penned the following message within the announcement: “Our direction is clear: to build a more disciplined group with two distinct businesses, each with a mandate and a structure that supports transparency and execution. I am confident that this is the right path forward to deliver long-term value for our fans, our businesses and IPs, our people, and our shareholders.”
This is a bold move by Embracer, a company which has struggled immensely as of late, laying off waves of staff and selling off studios last year. It may sound similar to Ubisoft’s drastic shift in structure and formation of Vantage Studios, which too gained ownership of the French giant’s most valuable IPs.
The key difference here, of course, being the emphasis on licensing out this IP. Perhaps Embracer’s leadership believes that by partnering with other studios to create new projects, it can benefit from successful launches without risking a perilously long and expensive development cycle. This may prove a smart approach, given the unstable nature of the industry at the moment.