Pokémon Go set for Saudi takeover

Pokémon Go maker Niantic is reportedly nearing a $3.5 billion deal to sell its game division to Saudi Arabia-owned Scopely.

The deal includes Pokémon Go as well as Niantic’s other video games and could be reached in the coming weeks, according to a Bloomberg report that quoted people familiar with the matter.

The report said that while the discussions are ongoing, there is “no assurance” that the deal will be reached.

Pokémon Go was released in 2016 and was an instant global hit. Players use their mobile device’s GPS to locate, capture, train, and battle virtual Pokémon – fictional creatures from Nintendo’s franchise.

According to Niantic, a San Francisco-based company, the game is the most downloaded and profitable augmented reality app of all time.

However, the firm struggled to replicate the game’s success with its other releases, including Harry Potter: Wizards Unite, which was discontinued in 2022. The company also had to cancel some other titles in development and lay off some of its staff.

By selling its games division, Niantic is likely to focus on its other products, including its “large geospatial model,” a positioning system based on Pokémon Go player data.

“As we move from phones to wearable technology linked to the real world, spatial intelligence will become the world’s future operating system,” the company said at the time.

Niantic was founded in 2010 as a unit within Google and became an independent company in 2015 when the search giant was restructured under Alphabet. Mobile game maker Scopely is owned by Savvy Games Group, a subsidiary of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund.

Last year, Niantic already signed a deal with Savvy to help it expand in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Egypt.