Niantic has announced that it's sold off its gaming wing to the Saudi-funded mobile firm Scopely for the princely sum (no pun intended) of $3.5 billion.
The deal, which was rumored to be happening last month, was confirmed today in a news post entitled "Niantic's Next Chapter". Niantic says that Scopely will acquire its games, including Pokemon Go, Pikmin Bloom, and Monster Hunter Now, for the aforementioned sum "with an additional $350 million of cash from Niantic being distributed as part of the deal".
It sounds as though the development structure of Niantic's gaming teams won't be changing much; in its own news post, Scopely says "all members of the Niantic gamemaking team" will join Scopely's staff and "continue to develop and operate their beloved experiences".
Pokemon Go SVP Ed Wu says his team plans to use Scopely's "full commitment, experience, and resources" to make the game "the very best it can be".
For his part, Niantic head John Hanke says he's "confident" that Niantic games will remain a "bridge to connect people and inspire exploration" under Scopely, praising the new owners' "incredible live services" and "exceptional experience working with the world's biggest and most beloved intellectual properties".
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