HTC invests in on-demand gaming and video companies


8 Feb 2011

Smartphone maker HTC plans to invest US$40m in on-demand cloud gaming company OnLive and has acquired UK-based mobile video specialist Saffron Digital.

According to the Wall Street Journal, HTC will spend US$40m on 5.33m shares in OnLive. It did not specify how big their share in the company would be.

OnLive has a game system which gives gamers access to instant-play newly released video games on TVs, PCs or Mac without requiring a disc, download or update.

HTC has also acquired Saffron Digital for stg£30m, which distributes video-on-demand services for mobile devices.

“Saffron Digital has developed an incredible expertise in mobile multimedia delivery. This ability to deliver optimised content in the future will be a key asset as content becomes more and more complex and localised,” said Peter Chou, CEO of HTC Corporation in a statement.

These two deals seem to be a part of a content strategy, possibly providing on-demand gaming and video content for HTC devices.

However, the nature of the deals suggests they won’t exclusively be attached to HTC. Both companies will keep a large degree of autonomy.

Saffron Digital already has deals with other mobile companies, such as Nokia, Sony Ericsson, LG and Samsung, which won’t be affected. At CES 2011, OnLive said it would expand its content from these mediums to Vizio’s tablets and smartphones, too.