MTV Games closes after Harmonix sale completes
Reports indicate only a few financial staff remain
MTV Games is closing for good now the final sale of Harmonix has been completed by parent company Viacom, reports indicate.
The studio decided to put Harmonix up for sale last year after Rock Band 3 made significant losses at retail - despite a very strong critical showing. Despite protestations that several parties were keen on buying the studio, negotiations turned sour as Harmonix issued a lawsuit against Viacom, accusing them of manipulating figures to avoid paying performance bonuses.
Eventually, Harmonix was purchased by a private investment group, Columbus Nova, essentially leaving them as an independent studio.
Viacom bought Harmonix in 2006 for $175 million and operated it via MTV Games, which MCV is reporting to be all but wound down.
It's not thought that Viacom will be making any further attempt to penetrate the video games market at this point.
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Dan Pearson
Dan Pearson joined Eurogamer in 2006 before moving over to GamesIndustry in 2010. He covers all areas of the business and spends much of the rest of his time shouting at his cat and killing dwarves in poorly constructed fortresses.
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