MMORPG News - (ex-) Sunflowers Bosses about to Open New MMO Studio

Yesterday several news sites reported Ubisoft swallows the German RTS specialist Sunflowers, the driving force behind Germany´s best selling Anno /A.D. franchise. Here´s the PR found on Blues:

SAN FRANCISCO – APRIL 11, 2007 – Today Ubisoft, one of the world's largest video game publishers announced that it has concluded an agreement to acquire SunFlowers, owner of the Anno brand, one of the most successful strategy games with five million units sold worldwide and one of the best-selling games in the German market.

"With the acquisition of Anno, Ubisoft reinforces its position in the real-time strategy market. Anno, along with Ubisoft's The Settlers, is one of the most well known franchises in Germany, reaching a wide audience that includes not only traditional gamers, but also women and families. We are proud to add another top-quality brand to our rich portfolio and we are looking forward to bringing the brand to an even wider audience," said Yves Guillemot, president and chief executive officer of Ubisoft.

Through the transaction, Ubisoft will acquire a 30 percent stake in Related Designs, which developed Anno 1701, the latest entry in the Anno series and is currently working on a future Anno title.

Mr. Adi Boiko, cofounder of SunFlowers stated "I'm glad to confide Anno to Ubisoft, a company known for the innovation and creativity of its development teams. The brand will benefit from Ubisoft's global strength, allowing new audiences to discover the pleasure of empire building through new Anno games."

The agreement between the two companies is subject to normal closing conditions. The acquisition is expected to close in Ubisoft's fiscal year 2007-08 first quarter.

Today GamePorts.de received confirmation by Ubi that the Sunflowers founders  Adi Boiko and Wilhelm Hamrozi will open a new studio "dealing with MMORPGs". Some of the current Sunflowers staff will move on to the new company.