Sony purchases $250m stake in Fortnite publishers, Epic Games

Sony Corporation has purchased a $250 million (US) minority stake in Epic Games, the video game publisher responsible for Fortnite and Unreal Engine.

The deal sees Sony acquire a 1.4% share in Epic Games, who is now valued at $25.46 billion, with a total of $2.3 billion raised in funding to date.

In a joint press release, the investment opens the door to ‘create unique experiences for consumers and creators.’

Sony Corporation co-chairman, president, and CEO, Kenichiro Yoshida, said the investment is a further extension on an already successful working relationship between the two.

“Epic’s powerful technology in areas such as graphics places them at the forefront of game engine development with Unreal Engine and other innovations,” Yoshida said.

“There’s no better example of this than the revolutionary entertainment experience, Fortnite.

Epic Games founder and CEO, Tim Sweeney, said the investment doesn’t mean all Epic productions will be exclusive to PlayStation consoles, but the pair will be able to expand their vision across not only gaming, but film and music as well.

“Together we strive to build an even more open and accessible digital ecosystem for all consumers and content creators alike,” he said.