Tencent in talks with SoftBank to buy Supercell: Report
Chinese Internet giant Tencent is in talks with SoftBank to buy the Japanese telco giant's majority stake in Finnish game developer Supercell, reports World Street Journal.
Finnish-based Supercell, best known for mobile game and global hit Clash of Clans, last year made $2.3 billion in revenue thanks to the popularity of its free-to-play titles that sell virtual items within the game.
SoftBank bought the firm for $1.53 billion in 2013 with a 51 percent stake, but raised it to 73 percent last year.
Citing unnamed sources, the paper said the Finnish game firm was valued at $5.25 billion last year.
Tencent, chosen by TechRepublic's Jason Hinter as one of seven Chinese companies that will shape the future tech industry, is a powerhouse in PC games and owns Riot Games, US game company maker of League of Legends, which is popular globally.
It is Asia's biggest internet company by revenue and owns WeChat, China's largest chat app which boasts 700 million monthly users, and has most of its business in social network and online gaming. It posted record profits for the first quarter this year with $1.4 billion, powered by rise of mobile games.
Buying a stake in Supercell will make the "Facebook of China" one of the largest publishers of games.