Former Studiocanal Boss Didier Lupfer Teams With Édouard Boccon-Gibod, Tariq Krim to Launch Media Company With AI-Enhanced Projects (EXCLUSIVE)
Over at The Media Company, every film and TV project will be developed and produced using a variety of AI tools which Lupfer, Boccon-Gibod and Krim said will help creative teams develop the scripts efficiently, fast-track production thanks to previsualization and optimize budgets. Krim, who launched AI Netvibes, Jolicloud and Dissident AI), said the banner will be using a wide range of sophisticated AI softwares.
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The Media Company's first project in development is 'Jules Verne contre Nemo,' a 1882-set detective thriller based on a bestseller by Céline Ghys and penned by Victoria Musiedlak and Julien Despaux ('Paris Police 1910'). The latter will also direct. The outfit is also developing a mainstream comedy, La Fille du Terrassier, written by Guillaume Clicquot and directed by Olivier Baroux whose filmmaking credits include 'Les Tuche,' one the highest grossing French comedy franchises in recent history.
On 'Jules Verne contre Nemo,' for instance, Lupfer said AI is being used very early in the process. 'After optioning the book, our creative AI experts started generating proposals based on the text, and that included visualizing characters, the articulation between them, and the visual universes of different locations described in the book, such as the train station, canals and streets in Amiens, and Verne's residence,' said Lupfer. 'Every time it gives you new ideas and makes it very easy to produce 2D and 3D scenery.'
Krim pointed out that a large variety of generative AI tools are already available today but are often used to produce bland work. 'The question is how we use them to continue to make art and to make creative things and not just products,' he says. As such, the company's task will be 'detect the talents of people who know how to use the tools and who have not only technical competence but also taste and a desire to use these tools to do something other than generic things,' Krim said.
Lupfer, who notably produced 'Assassin's Creed' and the toon TV franchise 'Raving Rabbids' while at Ubisoft,' argues that 'European cinema has the opportunity to use AI to distinguish itself from American productions.' He says that while 'the film industry is still based on artisanal processes, we at The Media Company are part of a new generation of producers who use the latest tools: forecasts, budget optimization and creative AI agents.' Ultimately, the idea behind the banner, Lupfer says, is to build a 'new film dynamic in Europe capable of attracting investment and producing works of international stature.'
Boccon-Gibod brings a wealth of expertise and relationships in the industry and beyond. Throughout his career, he served as head of EuropaCorp USA, worked at Christie's France, served as chairman and CEO of Publications Metro France and executive chairman of TF1 Production.
'There is a fairly widespread view that AI is against creators and is destroying jobs, and our bet is to prove the opposite. We think that it will help to produce more films,' said Boccon-Gibod.Best of Variety
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Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Ubisoft reports first-quarter 2025-26 sales
UBISOFT REPORTS FIRST-QUARTER 2025-26 SALES In €mQ12025-26 Reported change vs.Q1 2024-25 % of total net bookings Q1 2025-26 Q1 2024-25 IFRS 15 sales 310.8 -3.9% NA NA Net bookings 281.6 -2.9% NA NA Digital net bookings 250.2 -2.7% 88.8% 88.7% PRI net bookings 151.8 -4.3% 53.9% 54.7% Back-catalog net bookings 260.4 +4.4% 92.5% 86.0% Q1 Net Bookings reached €281.6m, below expectations, reflecting a lower-than-expected performance for Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six® Siege, a partnership that is now expected to materialize in Q2 and, to a lesser extent, an unfavorable foreign exchange impact. Progress on Group transformation: Ubisoft to reorganize into Creative Houses. These business units will enhance quality, focus, autonomy and accountability while fostering closer connections with players. The first Creative House is the new subsidiary announced in March with a recently appointed dedicated leadership. Closing of the transaction with Tencent is progressing well and, subject to regulatory approval, continues to be expected by the end of 2025. 2025-26 targets confirmed: Stable net bookings year-on-year, approximately break-even non-IFRS operating income and negative free cash flow. Following the closing of the Tencent transaction, the Group expects to maintain a consolidated non-IFRS net debt position of around zero. PARIS - July 22, 2025 – Today, Ubisoft released its sales figures for the first quarter of fiscal 2025-26, i.e., the three months ended June 30, 2025. Yves Guillemot, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, said 'The first quarter delivered mixed results. On the positive side, Assassin's Creed Shadows delivered on its expectations, with now more than 5 million unique players since its launch, and Rainbow Six Siege X received highly positive player feedback thanks to its renewed gameplay and enhanced features that drove significant player engagement growth. However, player spending in Rainbow Six Siege faced temporary but significant disruptions due to technical pricing issues, which have now been identified and addressed. Despite this one-off setback, the growth potential of the game is strong with solid traction on activity and in-game spending. We also continued to make meaningful progress on Ubisoft's transformation by outlining a new operating model built around business units, called Creative Houses. These units will reflect our diverse types of gaming experiences and will allow for enhanced quality, focus, autonomy and accountability. Over time, each of these Creative Houses will boost creative vision and business performance. The new Subsidiary announced earlier this year and overseeing our flagship brands – Assassin's Creed, Far Cry, and Rainbow Six – is the first of these Creative Houses. The recent announcement of its leadership team marks an important milestone as we move toward a more agile and focused organization while ensuring necessary long-term stability and creative vision.' Q1 ACTIVITY Overall, first quarter net bookings reached €282m, below the guidance, reflecting a lower-than-expected performance for Rainbow Six Siege, a partnership that is now expected to materialize in Q2 and, to a lesser extent, an unfavorable foreign exchange impact. Back Catalog net bookings stood at €260m, up 4% year-on-year and 6% excluding partnerships. Assassin's Creed® Shadows performed in line with expectations and recently crossed the 5 million player mark. Ongoing additions continue to enhance the player experience, most notably the recent Parkour update, which introduced new interactions for both Naoe and Yasuke and was well received by players. Ahead of the Holiday season, the mid-term potential of the game will be supported by the Claws of Awaji expansion, coming in Q2, that will introduce more than 10 hours of new content along with a new weapon, skills and abilities, further expanding and enriching the game experience. The Rainbow Six Siege X update was launched on June 10, alongside Year 10 Season 2, introducing a significant evolution to its business model, major upgrades to core systems including gameplay improvements, a permanent new 6v6 game mode called Dual Front and enhanced player protection features. The launch received strong community feedback, with players praising the visual upgrades, modernized maps with new environmental destruction and the improved onboarding mechanics. While resolved in June, player spending this quarter saw a significant impact from a pricing exploit with prepaid currency cards that temporarily inflated virtual currency wallets. However, the momentum since launch is encouraging with acquisition levels trending around 5 times above the same period last year. Session Days were up 25% year-on-year in June since launch and 65% compared to the 3-prior week's baseline. Overall, June delivered the third-strongest MAU performance in the game's history, trailing only the two peak months during the Covid period in Spring 2020. Session Days have continued to grow 20% in July to date. Despite the one-off pricing setback, in-game spending has also shown positive traction, with the Valkyrie Paragon becoming the highest-performing bundle launch in terms of currency spend. These developments reflect growing sustained interest in the game and indicate that the evolving content and engagement strategies are resonating with players. Thanks to its engine upgrade, the ambitious Siege X update will enable much stronger quality and velocity of content releases, setting the foundations for the years to come. It is not viewed as a single moment, but as the beginning of a longer journey, and the long-term growth trajectory of the title is very promising. Tom Clancy's The Division® 2 had a very strong start to the fiscal year with the launch of Year 7, the Battle for Brooklyn DLC release, a new Season and its inclusion in the Game Pass that drove significant growth in acquisition and engagement, reaching its highest activity performance since May 2020. Elsewhere in the catalog, Star Wars Outlaws™ released its second DLC, A Pirate's Fortune, in mid-May. The update received positive reviews, with players praising the return of legendary pirate Hondo Ohnaka, the story and new gameplay elements. The game is also set to reach a broader audience with its upcoming release on the Switch 2 console on September 4. PROGRESS ON GROUP TRANSFORMATION - CO-CEOs APPOINTED TO LEAD THE NEW SUBSIDIARY As part of the ongoing work to reshape its operating model led by an internal Transformation Committee, the Group will reorganize into autonomous Creative Houses – agile business units designed to reflect the diverse types of gaming experiences they offer. Each of them will have its dedicated leadership team, objectives and roadmap. This change aims to enhance quality, focus, autonomy and accountability while fostering closer connections with players and driving disciplined capital allocation. The new organization will be announced by the end of the year. Christophe Derennes and Charlie Guillemot have been appointed as co-CEOs of the newly formed subsidiary, the first of these Creative Houses, and will play a pivotal role in accelerating the growth of the Assassin's Creed®, Far Cry® and Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six® franchises. With complementary backgrounds, they bring strong industry expertise, a modern understanding of gamers' motivations, deep knowledge of the Ubisoft ecosystem, a relentless focus on quality delivery and a bold creative vision. Together, they will lead the new subsidiary in building evergreen, multi-platform game ecosystems. The closing of the transaction with Tencent, subject to regulatory approvals, is progressing well and continues to be expected by the end of 2025. 2025 AGM – APPOINTMENT OF TWO NEW INDEPENDENT DIRECTORS Ubisoft shareholders approved all resolutions on the agenda of its Annual General Meeting held on July 10 by a large majority showcasing the broad support of the shareholders in Ubisoft's strategy. In particular, the shareholders voted for the appointments of two new independent directors, Axelle Lemaire and André Loesekrug-Pietri, both of whom bring a wealth of experience and are widely respected for their leadership and expertise in Technology and Public Affairs. Ubisoft welcomes them to its Board of Directors and looks forward to benefiting from their respective experiences, which will contribute to support Ubisoft's strategy and its transformation over the coming years. The vote also led to the renewals of Claude France, Ubisoft's Lead Independent Director and Chair of the Audit & Risk Committee, as well as the mandates of Christian Guillemot and Michel Guillemot. The Group presents indicators which are not prepared strictly in accordance with IFRS as it considers that they are the best reflection of its operating and financial performance. The definitions of the non-IFRS indicators are appended to this press release. Sales and net bookings In € millions Q1 2025-26 Q1 2024-25 Sales (IFRS 15) 310.8 323.5 Restatements related to IFRS 15 (29.1) (33.5) Net bookings 281.6 290.0 IFRS 15 sales for the first quarter of 2025-26 came to €310.8 million, down 3.9% (1.6% at constant exchange rates1) compared with the €323.5 million generated in the first quarter of 2024-25. The first quarter of 2025-26 net bookings totaled €281.6 million, below the target of around €310.0 million and down 2.9% (0.5% at constant exchange rates) on the €290.0 million figure for the first quarter of 2024-25. Outlook Second-quarter 2025-26 Net bookings for the second quarter of 2025-26 are expected to come in at around €450 million. Expected growth vs. Q1 is driven by strategic B2B partnerships, including new ones, growing Rainbow Six Siege X contribution and material TV Series milestone-based revenues. Full-year 2025-26 The Company confirms its financial targets. It expects stable net bookings year-on-year, approximately break-even non-IFRS operating income and negative free cash flow. Following the closing of the Tencent transaction, the Group expects to maintain a consolidated non-IFRS net debt position of around zero. The line-up for the rest of FY26 includes Anno 117: Pax Romana™, Prince of Persia™: The Sands of Time remake, Rainbow Six® Mobile and The Division® Resurgence. A couple of titles will be announced at a later stage. Conference call Ubisoft will hold a conference call today, Tuesday July 22, 2025, at 6:15 p.m. Paris time/5:15 p.m. London time/12:15 p.m. New York time. The conference call will take place in English and can be accessed live and via replay by clicking on the following link: Contacts Investor Relations Alexandre Enjalbert Head of Investor Relations+33 1 48 18 50 78 Press Relations Michael Burk VP, Corporate Communications+33 1 48 18 24 03 DisclaimerThis press release may contain estimated financial data, information on future projects and transactions and future financial results/performance. Such forward-looking data are provided for information purposes only. They are subject to market risks and uncertainties and may vary significantly compared with the actual results that will be published. The estimated financial data have been approved by the Board of Directors, and have not been audited by the Statutory Auditors. (Additional information is provided in the most recent Ubisoft Registration Document filed on June 19, 2025 with the French Financial Markets Authority (l'Autorité des Marchés Financiers)). About UbisoftUbisoft is a creator of worlds, committed to enriching players' lives with original and memorable entertainment experiences. Ubisoft's global teams create and develop a deep and diverse portfolio of games, featuring brands such as Assassin's Creed®, Brawlhalla®, For Honor®, Far Cry®, Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon®, Just Dance®, Rabbids®, Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six®, The Crew® and Tom Clancy's The Division®. Through Ubisoft Connect, players can enjoy an ecosystem of services to enhance their gaming experience, get rewards and connect with friends across platforms. With Ubisoft+, the subscription service, they can access a growing catalog of more than 100 Ubisoft games and DLC. For the 2024–25 fiscal year, Ubisoft generated net bookings of €1.85 billion. To learn more, please visit: © 2025 Ubisoft Entertainment. All Rights Reserved. Ubisoft and the Ubisoft logo are registered trademarks in the US and/or other of non-IFRS financial indicators Net bookings corresponds to the sales excluding the services component and integrating the unconditional amounts related to license or distribution contracts recognized independently of the performance obligation realization, and restated for the impact of financing (financing component and price reductions). Player Recurring Investment (PRI) corresponds to sales of digital items, DLC, season passes, subscriptions and advertising. Non-IFRS operating income calculated based on net bookings corresponds to operating income less the following items: Stock-based compensation expense arising on free share plans, group savings plans and/or stock options. Financing component on sales contract. Depreciation of acquired intangible assets with indefinite useful lives. Non-operating income and expenses resulting from restructuring operations within the Group Breakdown of net bookings by geographic region Q1 2025-26 Q1 2024-25 Europe 35% 32% North America 49% 53% Rest of the world 16% 15% TOTAL 100% 100% Breakdown of net bookings by platform Q1 2025-26 Q1 2024-25 CONSOLES 50% 50% PC 26% 27% MOBILE 10% 10% Others* 14% 13% TOTAL 100% 100% *Ancillaries, etc. Title release schedule2nd quarter (July – September 2025) DIGITAL ONLY ASSASSIN'S CREED® SHADOWS: Claws of Awaji Expansion AMAZON LUNA, MAC WITH APPLE SILICON, PC, PLAYSTATION®5, XBOX SERIES X/S THE CREW® MOTORFEST: Season 7 AMAZON LUNA, PC, PLAYSTATION 4, PLAYSTATION 5, XBOX ONE, XBOX SERIES X/S FOR HONOR®: Year 9 Season 3 PC, PLAYSTATION 4, XBOX ONE HEROES OF MIGHT & MAGIC OLDEN ERA PC THE ROGUE PRINCE OF PERSIA PC SKULL AND BONES™: Year 2 Season 2 AMAZON LUNA, PC, PLAYSTATION 5, XBOX SERIES X/S TOM CLANCY'S RAINBOW SIX® SIEGE: Year 10 - Season 3 AMAZON LUNA, PC, PLAYSTATION 4, PLAYSTATION 5, XBOX ONE, XBOX SERIES X/S TOM CLANCY'S THE DIVISION® 2: Year 7 Season 2 AMAZON LUNA, PC, PLAYSTATION 4, XBOX ONE STAR WARS™ OUTLAWS NINTENDO SWITCH 21 Sales at constant exchange rates are calculated by applying to the data for the period under review the average exchange rates used for the same period of the previous fiscal year. Attachment Ubisoft reports first-quarter 2025-26 salesSign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Yahoo
Ubisoft unveils 'Creative Houses' model as first-quarter bookings miss expectations
By Leo Marchandon and Noemie Naudin (Reuters) -France's lead videogame maker Ubisoft announced on Tuesday a sweeping reorganisation of its internal structure, shifting to autonomous "Creative Houses" tailored to specific gaming genres, as it reported first-quarter net bookings that fell short of expectations. The company said in a call that the leadership of each Creative House would be selected based on specific gaming genres, and could include those from creative or technical backgrounds, as part of the new approach. "These units will reflect our diverse types of gaming experiences and will allow for enhanced quality, focus, autonomy and accountability," CEO and co-founder Yves Guillemot said in a statement. The first such unit, jointly owned with China's Tencent, will manage flagship franchises including Assassin's Creed, Far Cry, and Rainbow Six. Co-CEOs Christophe Derennes and Charlie Guillemot will lead brand development across multiple platforms. Ubisoft plans to roll out the full organisational changes by the end of the year. The company reported first-quarter net bookings of 281.6 million euros ($305.7 million), missing its target of around 310 million euros and marking a 2.9% decline from the same period of last year. It attributed the shortfall to a weaker-than-expected performance from the Rainbow Six Siege game and the delay of a partnership now expected in the second quarter. Despite the miss, Ubisoft reiterated its full-year guidance and forecast second-quarter net bookings of approximately 450 million euros. Upcoming releases include Anno 117: Pax Romana, a Prince of Persia remake, and mobile titles Rainbow Six Mobile and The Division Resurgence. Error while retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data
Tom's Guide
18-07-2025
- Tom's Guide
Forget 'The Last Of Us' — Netflix just announced a 'high-octane thriller' based on the Assassin's Creed franchise
Remember when Netflix and Ubisoft revealed they were partnering to "develop content" based on the "Assassin's Creed" franchise... almost five years ago? Well, yesterday (July 17), both parties confirmed that the first project from this partnership had finally been given the green light. Netflix's first "Assassin's Creed" show will also be a live-action video game adaptation, similar to HBO Max's "The Last Of Us," or Prime Video's hit "Fallout" adaptation. While it's still early days, we do have a few key details about the show to date, courtesy of announcements shared by Netflix (via Tudum)and Ubisoft. Here's everything we know about Netflix's "Assassin's Creed" series so far. The big thing to know (besides the fact that anything is happening at all, at least) is that Emmy nominees Roberto Patino ("Westworld," "Sons of Anarchy") and David Wiener ("Halo," "Homecoming") are on hand as series creators, showrunners, and executive producers. Patino and Wiener have issued a joint statement on the project, which leans on the scope and hints at the thrills we can expect. It reads: "We've been fans of Assassin's Creed since its release in 2007. Every day we work on this show, we come away excited and humbled by the possibilities that Assassin's Creed opens to us. "Beneath the scope, the spectacle, the parkour and the thrills is a baseline for the most essential kind of human story — about people searching for purpose, struggling with questions of identity and destiny and faith. It is about power and violence and sex and greed and vengeance. "But more than anything, this is a show about the value of human connection, across cultures, across time, and it's about what we stand to lose as a species when those connections break. We've got an amazing team behind us with the folks at Ubisoft and our champions at Netflix, and we're committed to creating something undeniable for fans all over the planet." Get instant access to breaking news, the hottest reviews, great deals and helpful tips. Other than that, we've got a series logline from Netflix. Unfortunately, it doesn't give us any hints at when in the franchise's timeline the show will be set, or which characters may crop up — but it does make the show sound exciting all the same. "Assassin's Creed is a high-octane thriller centered on the secret war between two shadowy factions — one set on determining mankind's future through control and manipulation, while the other fights to preserve free will. The series follows its characters across pivotal historical events as they battle to shape humanity's destiny." No casting info has been revealed as yet, nor do we have a release date, but seeing as the show's just been greenlit (and it sounds like it'll be a major production), I doubt we'll be seeing anything from Netflix's Assassin's Creed adaptation anytime soon. Netflix's track record with video game properties has mostly been pretty solid, with the caveat that the big hits are all animated shows like "Arcane," "Castlevania," or "Cyberpunk: Edgerunners." (I'm not really counting "The Witcher" here, as it draws from Andrzej Sapkowski's books, rather than CD Projekt's RPGs). The streamer's live-action "Resident Evil" series was a swing and a miss for me, but I'm open to the possibility that "Assassin's Creed" could be a success. Netflix's VP of Scripted Series, Peter Friedlander, sure has talked the forthcoming series up, too. In the announcement, Friedlander said Netflix and Ubisoft set out with "an ambitious goal to bring the rich, expansive world of Assassin's Creed to life in bold new ways," and goes on to bill the forthcoming show as "an epic adventure that both honors the legacy of the Assassin's Creed franchise and invites longtime fans and newcomers alike to experience the thrill of the Brotherhood as never before." It's a statement designed to generate hype, but given we've seen so many games make the hop to our screens successfully in recent years, and the fact that the show's been in development for some time already, I'm optimistic that everyone involved has cooked something up that's going to be worth watching. The way I see it, the "Assassin's Creed" series team certainly has plenty of material at their fingertips. There's loads of lore to be dealt with, and there's still loads of human history yet to get the Assassin's Creed treatment. Whether or not the series can be a hit like "Fallout" or "The Last Of Us" remains to be seen, but I can't help but see Ubisoft's history-hopping franchise as a potential springboard for success. Yes, even after the Assassin's Creed movie. Need something to watch while you wait for the live-action "Assassin's Creed" series to arrive? Check out our round-up of the best Netflix shows for tons more streaming recommendations perfect for your watchlist. Follow Tom's Guide on Google News to get our up-to-date news, how-tos, and reviews in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button.
