IPVG to expand 3D animation business to 200 seats

MANILA, Philippines - Listed IPVG Corp. is planning to expand its 3D animation business this year, in a bid to eventually design its own content for its online gaming business. IPVG Chief Executive Officer Enrique Y. Gonzales on Thursday told reporters that the company would expand the operations of its newly acquired subsidiary Lucid Multimedia Tech, Inc., a 3D animation outsourcing firm based in Makati. "We want to expand that business from 40 seats to around 200 seats by the end of the year," he said. He added that IPVG, which expected a slowdown in acquisitions this year as market conditions worsen, spent only P6.4 million for a 51% stake in Lucid Multimedia. Mr. Gonzales said expanding the capacity of the 3D animation business would entail building an additional facility this year. As Lucid expands, it would eventually be tapped to design games for another IPVG unit, IP E-Games Ventures, Inc. he added. The Business Processing Association of the Philippines estimates that nonvoice services make up around a third of the local outsourcing industry, which posted close to $7 billion in revenues last year. IPVG shares were last traded at P1.20 a piece on Oct. 21. The company had voluntarily suspended the trading of its shares pending negotiations with investors. The company has been mum on the deal, but the local bourse has ordered the resumption of trading of IPVG shares on Monday. Officials have said that it would go slow in buying other companies this year compared with last year, when it bought five companies in the online content and business process outsourcing sectors for about $30 million. The company said it would only consider investing in ventures that present low risks and high returns. IPVG, which has businesses in the business process outsourcing, online gaming and data center sectors, expects to hike profits by as much as a third this year, despite the slowing economy. — Paolo Luis G. Montecillo, BusinessWorld