Summarize this content to 2000 words in 6 paragraphs in Arabic Unlock the Editor’s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.Shares in French games maker Ubisoft plunged more than 17 per cent on Thursday morning after the company cut its financial outlook and delayed the release of its latest Assassin’s Creed video game.Paris-based Ubisoft said it was postponing the launch of Assassin’s Creed Shadows by three months to February following weaker than expected sales of its new Star Wars Outlaws game. Ubisoft had been counting on the two games to help reverse its fortunes after several years of launch delays and cancellations as the company cuts costs in an effort to contain its debt. On Wednesday, Ubisoft said net bookings for the second quarter were now expected to total €350mn to €370mn, compared with previous expectations of about €500mn. The group added that net bookings for the full year would be lower than last year, at about €1.95bn for the 2024-2025 fiscal year.“We recognise the need for greater efficiency while satisfying demanding players,” said Yves Guillemot, Ubisoft’s co-founder and chief executive, adding that management would launch a review “aimed at further improving our execution”.“Our second-quarter performance did not meet our expectations, and we are determined to address this quickly and decisively,” he added.It comes as Ubisoft faces pressure from activist shareholder AJ Investments. According to a letter from the investor seen by the Financial Times, AJ Investments has gathered support from 10 per cent of the French video game publisher’s shareholders to push for a sale and was discussing the idea with private equity groups. The letter was first reported by Reuters. AJ Investments declined to comment further.Ubisoft, which is owned through a 15 per cent stake by the Guillemot family, is run by its founders. China’s Tencent also has a just under 10 per cent stake, acquired as part of a deal with the family to block takeover bids.Shares in the Paris-listed group have dropped more than 58 per cent this year, giving it a market value of €1.23bn, an over 10-year low.Ubisoft said the delay to Assassin’s Creed Shadows was the result of “lessons learned” from the release of Star Wars Outlaws “that have led us to devote more time to polishing the title. This will allow the franchise’s most important entry to live up to its ambitions,” the company said.Assassin’s Creed Shadows has attracted criticism from some quarters for its portrayal of feudal Japan. The company cancelled its appearance at Japan’s biggest annual games showcase this week. “The cut is bigger than we had expected, and comes on the back of softer than expected sales for Star Wars Outlaws,” said analysts at Deutsche Bank, adding that the three-month delay to the Assassin’s Creed launch was “incrementally disappointing”. Ubisoft last year agreed to acquire streaming rights for Activision Blizzard’s portfolio of games as part of Microsoft’s $75bn takeover of Activision. “When Netflix first said it was going to go into streaming, their shares fell a lot and they were widely criticised,” Guillemot told the Financial Times at the time. Additional reporting by David Keohane
