Last September Geek Native wrote about Codemasters loosing control of ArchLord and today we read that Reliance has bought a 50% stake in the company.
I doubt the two are connected. Codemasters has plenty of tiles; Operation Flashpoint, DiRT and Overlord. The company has revenues in the region of $150 million and has works closely with Warner Bros for distribution in the US. Just three years ago the British company took in early $100 million in investment from Goldman Sachs.
Reliance runs sites like Jump Games and its gaming division, Zapak, does a lot with Flash games and online games. It’s expected that Zapak will be looking after Reliance’s 50% investment in Codemasters.
Perhaps Reliance is looking for a strategic global investment. Codemasters give them footprints in the US and in Europe. It’s also worth considering whether Reliance and Zapak are about to open a MMORG.
If Reliance was to launch a MMORG they might turn to a company like Codemasters to help then manage it. That might make Codemasters incredibly wealthy off the back of Reliance’s MMORPG risk. Investing in Codemasters would be a way for Reliance to ensure Codemasters always stayed within reach.
The other angle is cricket. Last month Codemasters announced International Cricket 2010. The company has a strong history with cricket computer games. There’s no doubting how significant cricket is in India.
Reliance’s investment in Codemasters may simply come down to cricket.
