Ubisoft partners with blockchain distribution platform Ultra

Paris, France, November 21, 2019 - Ultra, a next-generation games distribution platform that offers new solutions to both developers and players, this week announced that Ubisoft is to become the first major gaming company to bolster its UOS blockchain, a sister branch of EOSIO, as a corporate block producer, during a trial period on the testnet.

Block producers will provide the infrastructure to validate transactions happening on Ultra's blockchain. These transactions will include, for instance, in-game assets creation, ownership transfers between players, or payments. It is crucial for Ultra to onboard block producers who have both an interest and the capabilities to grow this new ecosystem, on top of being able to complete their technical validation task.

"Since Ubisoft is already a leader in the games industry and shows commitment to probe blockchain as a viable technology for games, we are very excited to be announcing our first cooperation of this kind with them" said Nicolas Gilot, founder and co-CEO of Ultra. "Ubisoft's rich portfolio of world-renowned brands, including Assassin's Creed, Just Dance and Far Cry, is a testament to their dedication to creating quality content for all, and their years long dedication to exploring blockchain technology ensures they have the knowledge and skills to be excellent block producers."

Nicolas Pouard, Ubisoft's blockchain initiative director added: "Our team at the Strategic Innovation Lab strongly believes that all blockchain use cases that bring value to players are important to support, and Ultra offers a solution that does just that. During this first trial period of collaboration, we hope to help them in bringing it to a larger scale and experiment with the possibilities this opens up for the industry."

"We're on a mission to shake up the gaming industry by placing power back into the hands of developers and players," said Gilot. "We are paving the way for a first-class game publishing platform, and we couldn't do it without the support of companies such as Ubisoft."

UOS will have a mix of technical block producers and corporate block producers, each of whom understand the unique aspects of Ultra.

Although Ultra's blockchain mainnet launch date is to be announced, Ubisoft will start contributing to the testnet before the end of the year and, if successful, will be part of the launch team for the Mainnet.