Tencent pulls directors from Epic’s executive board following antitrust “scrutiny” from US Justice Dept

Tencent has pulled two directors from Epic Games’ board following an antitrust investigation by the US Justice Department.

The government agency “expressed concerns” that Tencent had directors sitting on Epic’s board when it’s also the parent company of competitor Riot.

In a statement, the department said that by being simultaneously on two competing companies’ executive boards, Tencent was violating Section 8 of the Clayton Act, a US law designed to protect consumers from potentially harmful business practices.

“Scrutiny around interlocking directorates continues to be an enforcement priority for the Antitrust Division,” said the department’s deputy director of civil enforcement, Miriam R. Vishio.

“Due to the hard work of our tremendous staff, our increased enforcement around Section 8 over the last few years has achieved substantial results and become part of our fabric.”

We recently learned that Ubisoft was continuing its talks with Chinese giant Tencent over a possible buyout deal that would take the Assassin’s Creed maker private.