Ireland-based Keywords Studios has officially acquired the Italy-based integrated PR and communications agency LabCom.
As a games service provider, Keywords Studio is looking to broaden its reach through the acquisition, in addition to building towards a complete market offering for clients.
LabCom, meanwhile, primarily focuses on the Italian gaming sector. Under Keywords Studios, the company will continue being led by Marco Giannatiempo, who founded LabCom in 2005. The team currently consists of 16 people.
Terms and conditions
Keywords’ acquisition of LabCom will take place on the grounds that an initial €1 million (approximately $1 million) cash consideration is given, followed by up to 12,412 new ordinary shares depending on whether particular conditions are met three years down the line.
With clients including Riot Games, Konami and Bethesda, LabCom has already worked with a number of large brands in the industry.
“LabCom has always aimed to deliver constant growth over time and to broaden our customer service offering to further support our customers, enabling them to take advantage of new opportunities to promote their products,” Giannatiempo said. “We are very excited by this important agreement and believe it will allow us to achieve excellent results in the coming years in Europe and beyond.”
“We are delighted to welcome Marco and the LabCom team to Keywords. Having worked closely with Labcom we are very impressed by the quality of the team and the excellent service they provide to household names in the video game and wider entertainment sector in Italy and beyond,” said Keywords Studios CEO Bertrand Bodson.
Keywords Studios has also been expanding its presence into Australia, with new studios based in Brisbane and Adelaide. Earlier this month, Californian company Helpshift was also acquired for $75 million. Headquartered in San Francisco, Helpshift also has offices in the UK and India.
