© picture alliance / Geisler-Fotopress | Rolf-Peter Stoffels/Geisler-Foto
Claude Guillemot, one of the five brothers who founded the well-known video game company Ubisoft, died Friday evening in a plane crash in La Baule, in the Loire-Atlantique department in western France, in which two people lost their lives.
Ubisoft confirmed his death in a press release and expressed its “deep sorrow.”
Claude, the eldest of the Guillemot brothers, founded Ubisoft in 1986 together with his brothers Michel, Yves, Gérard, and Christian in Carentoir, Brittany. He served as Deputy Managing Director of Operations at Ubisoft and had been a member of the board of directors for 40 years—an unprecedented career for a family-owned company in the video game industry.
He was also CEO of Guillemot Corporation, which specializes in PC and console accessories (Hercules, Thrustmaster).
Ubisoft is currently facing major difficulties: the video game industry is in crisis, and the company has also been plagued by internal scandals. The brothers’ management style is increasingly being challenged by labor unions.
Illustration picture: © picture alliance / Geisler-Fotopress | Rolf-Peter Stoffels/Geisler-Foto