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Two Epic directors step down following DOJ antitrust investigation

Two Epic directors step down following DOJ antitrust investigation

Chinese tech and entertainment giant Tencent has removed two directors from Epic Games' board following a US Department of Justice (DOJ) investigation into antitrust laws. 

In a press release from the government body, the DOJ said that the board members had violated Section 8 of the Clayton Act. This stipulates that a director cannot be be on the board of two competing companies, in this case Epic and Tencent. 

As a result of the findings of this investigation, Tencent has made changes to its shareholder agreement with Epic Games, giving up its right to appoint directors to the Fortnite firm's board. 

“Scrutiny around interlocking directorates continues to be an enforcement priority for the Antitrust Division,” Miriam R. Vishio, deputy director of civil enforcement at the DOJ's antitrust arm. 

“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.”


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PCGamesInsider Contributing Editor

Alex Forbes-Calvin is a freelance writer and photographer, mostly operating within the games industry. Over his career, he has written for the likes of MCV, Eurogamer, GamesIndustry.biz, The Observer, VGC and Esquire. That's on top of writing books for Dark Horse on RuneScape, Assassin's Creed, Dead Island 2 and more.