Kim Hyung-tae, CEO of SHIFT UP, said on the 26th that the company will start providing specific information on new titles this year.
At the regular shareholders meeting held at the Korea Science and Technology Center in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, CEO Kim stated accordingly that the company will move forward so that both users and investors can build expectations for the next titles, Stellar Blade 2 and Project Spirit.
SHIFT UP posted record results last year on the back of its flagship intellectual property (IP), Goddess of Victory: NIKKE, and Stellar Blade. Kim said the company will more frequently make great games that allow many users to have enjoyable experiences, drawing on lessons from global hits despite an increasingly challenging industry environment. He added that, as part of that effort, the company is also reviewing ways to leverage new technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI).
On the day, SHIFT UP approved all agenda items as originally proposed, including the financial statements, partial amendments to the articles of incorporation, and director appointments. Directors Min Kyung-rip and Ahn Jae-woo were appointed as inside directors, and Ming Liu, global chief executive officer (CEO) of Tencent Interactive Entertainment (IEG), joined as an other non-executive director.
At the meeting site, shareholders continued to ask about SHIFT UP's share price recovery strategy and the disclosure of new title information. Despite strong results, SHIFT UP's share price has been sluggish. The current share price is in the 30,000-won range, about half the 60,000-won offering price at the time of its 2024 listing.
Chief financial officer (CFO) Ahn Jae-woo said the reason for the share price decline is the fading expectations for new releases in the game sector, adding that during periods when communication is lacking, the company will communicate with shareholders through shareholder returns. He added that in the next new-title cycle, when financial performance improves, the company will also consider other shareholder return methods such as bonus issues or dividends.
Some also said that the lack of disclosed information on new titles is weighing on the share price. One shareholder said it is regrettable that investors cannot gauge development progress.
In response, chief strategy officer (CSO) Min Kyung-rip said it is important to disclose high-quality information at a time when users can reasonably build expectations, adding that both Stellar Blade 2 and Project Spirit are progressing smoothly in development. Min added that starting this year, the company will disclose specific information on upcoming titles and work to build expectations.
CEO Kim also said that because there are many areas to fine-tune, such as quality, and schedules are handled delicately, information inevitably comes out slowly, adding that the company will coordinate schedules in consultation with partners and in-house development studios so that shareholders can be satisfied.
In addition, as part of its shareholder return policy, the company said it will retire 10 billion won worth of treasury shares this year and purchase an additional 20 billion won of new treasury shares.
Regarding cooperation with Tencent, CSO Min said Tencent is maintaining a strategic relationship as the second-largest shareholder and publisher, adding that regardless of the director appointment, SHIFT UP operates independently.
Min said the company aims to reflect Tencent's extensive experience in facilitating smooth global business development, adding that Project Spirit will involve Tencent as publisher and co-developer and that collaboration will be strengthened even more than on NIKKE.