Sony has invested $250 million to acquire a 1.4% stake in Epic Games, the developer of the online video game “Fortnite,” which has captivated millions of gamers worldwide. Sony’s move comes just months before the planned launch of the highly anticipated PlayStation 5.Sony and Epic will expand their partnership to include Sony’s growing platform and digital ecosystems, such as various virtual events and Fortnite’s digital forefront, in Sony’s portfolio of technology and entertainment assets. Before Sony’s investment, Epic had raised $1.58 billion in three previous funding rounds, including an investment from Chinese technology company Tencent in 2012. Sony’s deal is separate from Epic’s plan to raise $750 million from multiple investors.
Epic Games has said that video games will not be available only on Sony consoles. Instead, the studio will be able to release games on any platform it chooses. Its partnership with Sony aims to create digital entertainment experiences, as it says, which is not surprising considering what has happened in the Fortnite world recently (concerts, movie screenings, etc.). Epic's Fortnite is one of the most popular and beloved games for many gamers worldwide, with approximately 78.3 million monthly active users.
Additionally, 3.2 billion hours were spent playing Fortnite in April, according to Epic. The total number of registered gamers increased to 350 million in the same month, as most people were in lockdown due to the COVID-19.
Sony's investment comes just months before the planned launch of the Playstation 5, which will be released alongside Microsoft's rival Xbox Series X. In addition to Fortnite, Epic is also the developer of the "Unreal Engine," a set of game development tools used by many other publishers to develop their own games. The company's upcoming Unreal Engine 5 will be compatible with upcoming Sony and Microsoft devices .
