GameSpy in Licensing and Investment Deal

A unit of Ubi Soft Entertainment, a French video-game publishing giant, has signed a $25-million investment and licensing deal with GameSpy Industries, an Irvine-based entertainment portal. The unit, GameLoft, is the online gaming arm of Ubi Soft and its parent company, Guillemot Corp.

Privately held GameSpy is known for making a series of software applications that allow consumers to find everything from games to music on the Internet. In the deal, which closed last month, GameLoft agreed to invest $7 million to pick up a minority interest in the Orange County company. The deal also includes a three-year, $18-million licensing agreement between the two companies, allowing GameLoft to repackage GameSpy’s editorial content in various languages--including French, Spanish and Chinese.

Officials said GameLoft plans to localize the GameSpy sites by year’s end to attract consumers in Europe, Canada, China and Australia. This marks the third round of major funding for the Irvine company. Last year, GameSpy pulled in minority investments from Hollywood heavyweights Richard Wolpert and Michael Ovitz, as well as online technology news powerhouse Ziff-Davis Inc. Financial details of these deals were not disclosed.