Moonton co-founder Justin Yuan, centre, at the company’s Epicon 2019 conference. ByteDance acquired Moonton for US$4 billion in an effort to bolster its gaming offerings in Southeast Asia and compete with Tencent. Photo: Mobile Legends Japan/Twitter
Bitter gaming war between ByteDance and Tencent a windfall for independent Chinese studios
- ByteDance’s acquisition of Moonton in March increased the studio’s value sevenfold from a few months earlier and came after it cancelled a deal with Tencent
- Tencent has already invested more in gaming studios this year than in all of 2020 amid a bidding war with ByteDance
Moonton co-founder Justin Yuan, centre, at the company’s Epicon 2019 conference. ByteDance acquired Moonton for US$4 billion in an effort to bolster its gaming offerings in Southeast Asia and compete with Tencent. Photo: Mobile Legends Japan/Twitter