Starbreeze acquires Dhruva Interactive for $8.5 million
Leading Indian game company takes its longstanding relationship with Starbreeze to the next level
Starbreeze Studios has agreed to acquire 90.5% of Dhruva Interactive, one of the biggest game companies in India and a specialist in art production.
The deal is worth a total of $8.5 million, comprising $7 million in cash and $1.5 million in Starbreeze stock. Dhruva earned $4.6 million in revenue in the fiscal year ending March 2016. The deal is expected to complete in the first quarter of next year.
Dhruva was founded in 1997 - you can read that remarkable story here - and it now employs more than 320 people in three studios across India. The company's recent work includes art production for a string of first-party Xbox games, including Halo 5, Forza Horizon 3, Quantum Break and the forthcoming Sea of Thieves. It also counts Starbreeze among its clients, providing "the major part of the asset production" for Payday 2, a vitally important contributor of the Swedish company's revenue.
"Bold plans need the right partners and Content is King," said Starbreeze CEO Bo Andersson-Klint in a statement, referring to the existing relationship between the two companies as a major factor in the acquisition. "I am confident that bringing Dhruva into the Starbreeze family will strengthen Starbreeze as a global entertainment company."
Dhruva will continue to operate under its own brand and will be free to work with other clients, but it will also satisfy the art production requirements for Starbreeze projects like Overkill's The Walking Dead. In addition, Starbreeze will be able to offer Dhruva's services to its publishing partners.
Rajesh Rao, founder and CEO of Dhruva, said that Starbreeze is, "exactly the kind of company that we'd like to evolve with... As part of the Starbreeze family, we will be able to add cutting edge VR content to our repertoire as well. It's an extremely exciting time."