Rumor: S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 Canceled, GSC Game World ClosedAn ugly rumor coming out of Ukraine claims that S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 is canceled and developer GSC Game World has been closed down.
This is seriously disappointing news if it turns out to be true. According to a Google translation of Ukrainian News, GSC Game World founder and CEO Sergei Grigorovich has decided to shut down the company. What led to the decision isn't clear, although it appears that someone - perhaps Grigorovich, perhaps employees at the studio - weren't happy with the progress being made on S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2. The closure of the studio, of course, means that S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 is dead in the water.
And sadly, it looks like it is true: GSC initially denied the report via Twitter, but that tweet was quickly deleted and then followed by another from GSC Director Dmitri Bourkovski, who wrote, "not PR. GSC closed." In response to inquiries from Rock, Paper, Shotgun, GSC said only, "Sorry, no comments at this point," which is never a good sign.
On the other hand, this wouldn't be the first time that an eastern European game company pulled a bizarre "we're going out of business!" stunt to drum up publicity. It's a faint hope - a very, very faint hope - but given how much I've been looking forward to S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2, I'm going to cling to it.
UPDATE: It turns out that Dmitri Bourkovski, who earlier "confirmed" the closure of GSC on Twitter, doesn't actually work for GSC Game World at all; his Linkedin profile lists him as the "Head of Publishing, Games Division" at Mail.ru. He also told Beefjack that he has "no connection" with the project and was only tweeting about what he'd heard. An interesting twist! We're waiting for an official response to our inquiries from GSC and will update again when we hear more.
UPDATE 2: Sergey Galyonkin, marketing director at 1C Multimedia [1C Company published the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. games in some regions] has blogged about the closure of GSC, which you may or may not take as confirmation as you see fit. "GSC is closed, a fact confirmed by all. The team is almost completely dissolved, the state has only a few people," he wrote, obviously Google translated.
Galyonkin said a deal to bring the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. series to consoles fell through and the projected sales for a PC-exclusive post-apocalyptic shooter based in eastern Europe weren't enough to justify the expense of developing the game. There were also apparently concerns, as stated earlier, about the current state of the game's development and some claims that GSC Game World chief Grigorovich is just "stupidly tired."
We're still awaiting official word from GSC but at this point, it sounds very much like that's that.
(c) Escapist
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International Investment Forum “Seed Forum Kyiv” will be held in UkraineOn November 29, 2011 International Investment Forum "Seed Forum Kyiv" will be held at the Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Velyka Zhytomyrska Str., 33, 4th Floor, conference hall "Colosseum"). Forum co-organizers are the Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, "Seed Forum" and the State Agency for Investment and management of national projects of Ukraine.
"Seed Forum" is an international network of investment companies, venture funds, business angels, innovative startups, technology parks, business innovation centers. For 9 years being "Seed Forum" brought together into one operating system over 12,000 investors and 1,200 companies - one of the world's largest network of entrepreneurs and investors. Seed Forum is a global organization hosting investor conferences in more than 40 countries and is considered to be one of the most professional and experienced venues for presentations of investor ready start-up companies.
Thanks to Forums companies that require initial funding receive a unique opportunity to present their business ideas to potential investors and partners. Investors will be able to see the best Ukrainian and foreign start-ups and get a chance to invest in the future Facebook, Twitter and Google.
Partnerships are established with such influential organizations as the EBRD and the London Stock Exchange, Association of Singapore venture capital investors, the State Agency for Trade and Investment of UK, with well-known political figures, including President of Iceland, administrations and governments of Norway, Poland, authorities and business circles of London, Oslo, Tallinn, etc., as well as embassies of countries where the forums are held, with many private and corporate investors in Ukraine and abroad, including Nokia Venture, Intel Capital, Ericsson Venture, Capman, Alliance Venture.
"Seed Forum" starts in Ukraine as a national component of the global network. "Seed Forum" promotes the development of innovative enterprises in Ukraine, establishment of effective direct ties with foreign investors and innovative companies, integration of the Ukrainian, especially start-up, business in European and global investment and technology space.
The Forum program includes participation in the official opening of the International Charitable Fund "Seed Forum Ukraine" with participation of a number of leading members of Parliament and representatives of ministries and departments of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine
Participants will have every opportunity to communicate with foreign companies and selected IT startups from Ukraine, as well as a number of Ukrainian and foreign investors and businessmen. Also there will be a ceremonial signing of a cooperation agreement between the "Seed Forum Ukraine" and the state industrial development corporation «SIVA» (Norway). The activity of SIVA aims to develop strong regional and local business groups and industrial clusters in the fields of infrastructure, information technology, and innovation centers.
The Forum is free, but a number of seats is limited.
Register on the forum and get more information at http://www.seedforum.org.ua/.
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Three of Top 10 M&A deals in Ukraine in 2011 were financed with foreign capitalThree of Top 10 Ukrainian M&A deals in 2011, stated by KyivPost newspaper were financed by foreign capital. These are: Ukrtelecom, Inkerman, VAB Bank.
Ukrtelecom
It is hard to consider this year’s privatization of a 93 percent stake in fixed-line telephone monopoly Ukrtelecom as a classical M&A transaction. For one, it was a privatization deal. Secondly, controversial conditions of the privatization auction excluded many top investors from taking part. As a result, only one bidder took part.
And in the end, the market is convinced that the new owner, Austria’s EPIC, represents domestic business interests as a front. Nevertheless, Ukrtelecom was acquired by the group for $1.3 billion, making it the second largest privatization acquisition in Ukraine’s history after the 2005 $4.8 billion purchase Kryvorizhstal by Mittal Steel (Today ArcelorMittal).
Ukrtelecom’s privatization also deserves attention because the company owns Ukraine’s sole license for 3G telecommunications.
Inkerman
In January, Horizon Capital, a private equity fund, and Hartwall Capital of Finland, bought a stake in Crimea-based Inkerman, one of Ukraine’s largest wine producers. The sale price was not disclosed.
VAB Bank
In January, TBIF Financial Services, a Dutch company which represents the interests of Israeli investors, sold an 84 percent stake in Ukraine’s VAB Bank to an unknown group of foreign investors for $69 million.
According to January note to investors produced by Renaissance Capital, the new owners were represented by Troika Dialog, an investment bank that is active in Russia. The sale comes after VAB bank doubled its losses in 2010 to $78 million.
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Activ Solar plans to invest 700 mln Euro in solar energy in UkraineAccording to Austrian newspaper WirtschaftsBlatt, Austrian company Activ Solar plans to invest additional 700 mln Euro in solar energy projects in Ukraine.
Activ Solar already invested 300 mln Euro in semiconductor factory in Zaporizhzhya, Ukraine, says Kaveh Ertefai, General Director of Active Solar.
According to ProUa.com Activ Solar is connected to Ukrainian businessmen Andrei Klyuev and Sergei Klyuev, the co-owners of Austrian holding SLAV AG.
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Vega Introduces Service Of Phone Calls Through Internet For Corporate ClientsThe Vega telecommunications group has introduced a service "Vega Network" for phone calls through the Internet from April 4.
The service will allow corporate subscribers to make phone calls from a city number of Vega to all directions and will provide free calls between employees of different offices within one city with the use of inside numbers (201,202, 203, and others).
The operator offers two tariff plans within this service: Vega Network 3 and Vega Network 4 which include 3 and 4 IP-lines respectively with inside numbers and a city number of Vega. The number of IP-lines can be expanded to eight.
The use fee within the tariff plans is UAH 50 and UAH 60 a month respectively.
The service is available for corporate clients in Kyiv, Boryspil, Vyshneve (both in Kyiv region), Donetsk, Mariupol, Makiivka (both in Donetsk region), Kharkiv, Luhansk, Dnipropetrovsk, Novomoskovsk, Kryvyi Rih (both in Dnipropetrovsk region), Zaporizhia, Odesa, Mykolaiv, Kherson, Simferopol, Sevastopol, Yalta, Yevpatoria (the cities are in Crimea), Lviv, Ternopil, and Ivano-Frankivsk.
As Ukrainian News earlier reported, the Vega telecommunications group was created as a result of the re-branding of the Farlep Optima group of companies (which consisted of the Farlep, Optima Telecom, Ukomlain, TsSS, IP Telecom, Matrix, Vilcom, and several other companies).
The Vega Group is part of the Donetsk-based System Capital Management company.
The Farlep-Invest open joint-stock company manages the Vega Group.
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MTS Ends 2010 With Profit Of UAH 752 MillionThe mobile communications operator Ukrainian Mobile Communications rendering services under the MTS brand finished 2010 with a net profit of UAH 752 million.
Ukrainian News learned this from a statement by the operator.
In 2010 the operator increased its net revenues by 4.1% to UAH 8.511 million, comparing with 2009.
The company notes that growth in revenues and control over the cost-efficiency helped to ensure high profitability of the company's business.
MTS's OIBDA (Operating Income Before Depreciation and Amortization) rose by 7.4% to UAH 3,955 billion and margin went up by 1.5 p.p. having amounted 46.5%, compared with 2009.
As Ukrainian News earlier reported, the company finished 2009 with a net profit of UAH 640.3 million, and decreased its net revenues by 4.9% or UAH 421.5 million, comparing with 2008, to UAH 8,172.7 million.
MTS's OIBDA amounted to UAH 3,681.3 million in 2009.
100% of the shares in the Ukrainian Mobile Communications belong to the MTS company (Russia).
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Ukrainian RadioSystems Reorganized From Closed Joint-Stock Company Into Private Joint-Stock CompanyThe Ukrainian RadioSystems company, which renders its services under the Beeline brand, from a closed joint-stock company into a private joint-stock company.
The changes are related to requirements of the Ukrainian Law "On joint-stock companies."
As Ukrainian News earlier reported, on October 5, 2009, the Altimo company (Russia) and Telenor agreed to merge Kyivstar and VimpelCom to create a new cellular communications operator, VimpelCom Ltd. (Bermuda islands), to provide integrated cellular communications services in Russia, Ukraine, and other member-countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States, as well as in Georgia, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos.
The two companies intend to complete their merger by 2014.
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Kyivstar To Incorporate Storm And Raise Statutory Fund By UAH 350 Million To UAH 884.4 MillionThe Kyivstar telecommunication operator has decided to incorporate Kyiv-based Storm limited liability company and respectively raise statutory fund by UAH 350 million to UAH 884.369 million, head of Kyivstar press service Yulia Shylina told the Ukrainian News agency.
Stockholders of the company took the decision on March 14.
As Ukrainian News earlier reported, On October 5, 2009, the Altimo company (Russia) and Telenor agreed to merge Kyivstar and VimpelCom to create a new cellular communications operator, VimpelCom Ltd. (Bermuda islands), to provide integrated cellular communications services in Russia, Ukraine, and other member-countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States, as well as in Georgia, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos.
Kyivstar and Beeline intend to complete their merger by 2014.
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Mobile Communication Operators Favour Being Empowered To Provide Mobile PaymentsMobile communication operators are demanding right to provide mobile payments.
"To actively develop useful and convenient service of mobile payments in Ukraine, the state should introduce amendments into the legislation that regulates provision of telecommunication and financial services," press service of the Kyivstar telecommunication operator told the Ukrainian News agency.
Kyivstar said that current legislation allows mobile communication subscribers to pay only for telecommunication services using their mobile phones, but payments for services rendered by other organizations refer to financial services and require respective licensing.
Press service of the MTS Ukraine mobile communication operator also said that operators cannot independently hold mobile payments as they do not have legal right to that.
In its turn, press service of the Astelit mobile communication operator (the life:) brand) told the Ukrainian News agency that the company is analyzing situation in that sector and searching opportunity to provide the service in frames of current legislation.
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Property Fund Calls 5 Austrians Ultimate Owners Of UkrtelecomThe State Property Fund of Ukraine calls five Austrian nationals, three of whom are EPIC managing partners, the ultimate owners of ESU (Kyiv; subsidiary of the European Privatisation and Investment Corporation, EPIC, Austria), which on March 11 acquired 92.79% of shares in Ukrtelecom, Ukraine's biggest telecommunication company, Property Fund Chairman, Oleksandr Riabchenko, has announced when speaking to the Verkhovna Rada.
In his words, EPIC managing partner Peter Goldscheider holds 24% of the shares, Brigitte Goldscheider 23.5%, EPIC managing partner Gustav Wurmboeck 24%, Marina Wurmboeck 23.5%, and Franz Lanschutzer, another managing partner, 5%.
He notes that ESU, when submitting documents for the privatisation, provided information about its owners.
"The buyer (ESU) is owned by a Cyprus-based company [EPIC Telecom Invest Ltd], the Cyprian company belongs to the Austrian company [EPIC], and the Austrian company is owned by five Austrian citizens," he said.
Before, EPIC said that EPIC Goldscheider & Wurmbock, Vienna (EPIC), the exclusive owner of EPIC Advisors Limited (EAL), which through its subsidiary, EAL, is the sole owner of EPIC Services Ukraine (ESU), had made a decision to optimise the holding structure, having adapted it for the privatisation of Ukrtelecom by transferring rights to direct ownership of ESU to EPIC Telecom Invest Ltd (ETI).
EAL is 100-percent owned by ETI.
As Ukrainian News earlier reported, the State Property Fund on March 11 sold 92.79% of shares in Ukrtelecom to ESU for UAH 10.575 billion.
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