A new report has just revealed that Tencent Group is planning on buying the Black Shark brand and integrating it with its own Content Business Group. The move from the company arrives as it apparently plans to step into the Metaverse.
The news arrives from 36Kr and multiple independent sources who stated that the Chinese tech giant aims on acquiring the gaming smartphone maker. It adds that the gaming smartphone making company will also undergo a business transformation after the acquisition process is complete. In other words, Black Shark as a brand would likely see an expansion once the transaction is completed.
This diversification process will reportedly grow to include VR (Virtual Reality) based technologies and devices. So, the software content for VR will be provided by Tencent while Black Shark manufactures the hardware. For those unaware, the gaming smartphone brand is a relatively young company that was established back in 2017 and was backed by another Chinese tech giant, Xiaomi. As of right now, Xiaomi is the majority shareholder, holding around 46.4 percent stake in Black Shark. Unfortunately, Tencent has yet to official comment on this news at the moment.
Although, with tech companies moving towards the AR/VR field, especially after the introduction of the Metaverse, it was only a matter of time before the Chinese company would also make its move. Back in Q3 2021, the brand had even filed for a number of trademarks for technologies for the Metaverse. While the company has yet to confirm this news, it makes sense that the group would seek out an experienced brand that has its own facilities for R&D and manufacturing to build a platform through which its content can be accessed.
This isn’t something new either, since Facebook had previously acquired Oculus in the past to fill up the hardware gap in its plans to provide both VR content along with the devices that allows you to access the VR world. Another source added that Tencent was likely in contact with all AR/VR related projects on the market, such as HTC. But since the group is known for a number of its popular gaming titles in the market, it isn’t odd that it chose Black Shark. Both brands have also previously partnered up for the latter’s gaming smartphones as well.
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