By
Godfrey Benjamin
April 5th, 2024
According to Sony and The Lego Group, the investment into Epic Games is to create a “family-friendly” metaverse project.
Sony (TYO: 6758) and The Lego Group are investing $2 billion in Fortnite maker Epic Games as part of a metaverse-driven initiative. Pursuant to the deal, Sony, and Kirkbi, the holding company behind Lego, will each invest $1 billion in Epic. Due to this injection, the Epic company now has a $31.5 billion valuation, subject to customary closing conditions.
The deal comes following announced plans by both Lego and Epic to co-create a “family-friendly” metaverse for kids. This immersive and engaging digital experience will be an outlet for children of all ages to enjoy and interact. In addition, children will also be privy to resources designed to stoke their creative ingenuity. Speaking on the investment, Kirkbi chief executive officer Soren Thorup Sorensen said:
“A proportion of our investments is focused on trends we believe will impact the future world that we and our children will live in. This investment will accelerate our engagement in the world of digital play, and we are pleased to be investing in Epic Games to support their continued growth journey, with a long-term focus toward the future metaverse.”
Meanwhile, Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney stated that the new influx of working capital would “accelerate” his platform’s quest to “build the metaverse”. Furthermore, Sweeney also described his latest investors – Sony and Kirkbi, as “partners who share our [metaverse] vision.”
Although primarily known as the company behind Fortnite, Epic is a video game juggernaut. The platform is the developer of Unreal Engine, one of the biggest platforms used to create video games. In addition, Epic also operates its own online games store, which is in competition with Microsoft and Valve.
Founded by Sweeney in 1991, Epic now has around 40 offices across the globe.
Lego Teaming Up with Epic Underscores Toy Company’s Metaverse Long-term Ambitions
Sony and Lego’s involvement in the Epic deal is one of the latest indicators of growing interest in the metaverse among big businesses. Since the concept of this emerging digital world first dropped, the hype around it has been exponential. The metaverse, widely seen as the next order of holistic human interaction, supports a broad scope of activities. Now, contributing analyst at ‘The Motley Fool,’ Jose Najarro, explains that the initiative is very positive for metaverse gaming. According to Najarro, this initiative “affirms that the metaverse has a future for the gaming community.”
Lego, the popular children’s toy production company, already has a successful line of video games based on lucrative franchises. These include Disney’s Star Wars and Warner Bros.′ Batman. However, the collaboration with Epic represents the Danish toy line’s first proper foray into metaverse-driven initiatives.
Meanwhile, Sony views the latest investment initiative as another groundbreaking milestone in its push for tech advancement. According to Kenichiro Yoshida, Chairman, president and CEO of Sony Group Corp, this investment will advance Sony’s “development of new digital fan experiences in sports and our virtual production initiatives.