According to Bloomberg recently, Tencent plans to acquire South Korean game developer Nexon for about US$15 billion (about RMB 107.6 billion), with the goal of strengthening its competitiveness in the global gaming market through holdings Nexon.Nexon founder Kim Jong-wook (deceased)'s family owns approximately 44.4% of Nexon's shares through holding company NXC Corp. His wife and daughter actually control about 67.6% of NXC Corp's equity, becoming the key negotiator for the acquisition.

Nexon was founded in South Korea in 1994 and currently has a market value of approximately US$15 billion.His main works include "Rocky", "Rocky Heroes", "Dungeon and Warriors (DNF), "Bubble Hall", "Bubble Warrior", "Kart", "Chain of the Sky Wings", "Domain of God", "South Island", "Counter-Strike Online" and "Counter-Strike Online2".

Tencent has a long-term cooperative relationship with Korean game developer Nexon, such as agents to operate the national server of "DNF", and signed a mainland Chinese distribution agreement for the two shooting games "THE FINALS" and "ARC Raiders" in 2024.If the acquisition is successful, it will help Tencent further integrate classic IP resources such as "Adventure Island" and "Kart" under Nexon, and deepen its layout in the shooting game field.

South Korea's sensitive attributes of regulatory environment and cultural industries may pose obstacles to cross-border acquisitions.In addition, the trend of Nexon in recent years in cooperating with Blizzard to develop the StarCraft IP and Overwatch mobile game may affect its valuation and strategic independence.

Some people familiar with the matter said that it is not clear at present how much NXC accepts the sale of Nexon shares, and whether Tencent's deliberation can lead to a transaction is uncertain, and the specific structure of the transaction has also not been finalized.Tencent representatives did not respond to a request for comment, while Nexon and NXC declined to comment.