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Assassin’s Creed publisher Ubisoft to close online store in China as part of ‘strategic adjustment’, commits to launch merchandise through local partners

  • Ubisoft’s flagship online store on Alibaba’s Tmall platform will halt merchandise sales from next Wednesday
  • The Tencent Holdings-backed video game publisher said it will continue to launch merchandise in China in collaboration with licensing partners

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French video gaming giant Ubisoft Entertainment has decided to discontinue its direct merchandise sales business in China. Photo: Shutterstock
Ann Caoin Shanghai
French video gaming giant Ubisoft Entertainment, the publisher behind hit action-adventure franchise Assassin’s Creed, is set to close its official online store in mainland China, as the company ceases direct merchandise sales in the industry’s largest market.
Ubisoft’s flagship store on Tmall, the e-commerce platform owned by Alibaba Group Holding, will halt sales from next Wednesday, following a “strategic adjustment” to “no longer operate its merchandise sales business in China”, the company announced last Friday via its official account on Chinese microblogging platform Weibo. Alibaba owns the South China Morning Post.

“Following a review of our collectibles and merchandising products strategy in China, we have decided to stop our direct sales in the country,” a representative from Ubisoft China said in a statement to the Post on Wednesday.

Still, the Tencent Holdings-backed company said it remains committed to the Chinese market. “We will continue to launch products in collaboration with licensing partners, and these will be available on the sales channels of our partners,” the statement said.
An action sequence from Assassin’s Creed Origins, the 10th major instalment in Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed series. Photo: Handout
An action sequence from Assassin’s Creed Origins, the 10th major instalment in Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed series. Photo: Handout

Ubisoft saw its revenue decline during its past financial year ended March, which company chairman and chief executive Yves Guillemot described as a “challenging year” that has prompted cost-reduction efforts. It posted an operating loss of €500.2 million (US$536.1 million), as net bookings declined 18 per cent to €1.739 billion from the previous financial year.

At present, Ubisoft’s Tmall store offers a variety of merchandise, ranging from apparel priced under 100 yuan to so-called garage kits that each cost more than 2,000 yuan. These products are based on some of the company’s popular video game franchises, including Assassin’s Creed, Tom Clancy’s and Just Dance.

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