Report: Ouya talking to Google, Tencent about acquisition
Ouya is looking to be acquired, and it's in talks with Google, Amazon and a few Chinese companies, including Riot Games owner Tencent, Re/code reports. Re/code's sources say there aren't any offers on the table yet, but talks are proceeding. Ouya sees acquisition, rather than another funding round, as the better option, the report says.
China opened itself up to the wider world of gaming when early this year it lifted a 14-year ban on foreign console sales. Microsoft plans to launch the Xbox One in China on September 23, and both Sony and Nintendo have announced plans to launch hardware in the country.
Ouya raised $8.6 million on Kickstarter in 2012, promising to be an Android-powered living room micro-console where all games would be free, at least to try. It launched in July 2013 and in its first month, 27 percent of owners had purchased a game and the console didn't generate much revenue for most developers. In August 2013, Ouya's Free the Games Fund pledged to donate $1 million to successful Kickstarter Ouya projects, though it faced controversy when campaigns tried to cheat the system. In September, Ouya overhauled that initiative.
Ouya dropped the "free-to-try" requirement for its games in April 2014, and it's recently taken steps intended to encourage more developers to make Android games.
[Image: Ouya]
