Atari has announced its plan to dive into the world of cryptocurrencies in an effort to “optimize assets and the Atari brand” through a duo of Bitcoin-like currencies.
The jump into the emerging world of blockchain-based digital currencies is an interesting one to say the least, but Atari isn't the first notable game company to make the leap. Crytek entered into a partnership with the startup Crycash to create a game-focused digital currency late last year.
In a press release, the French company explained that it plans to create two different digital currencies through partnerships with two separate firms.
The first is a product of Atari’s recent investment in Infinity Networks, the company behind a blockchain-based digital entertainment platform. As a result of that investment, the company's in-development service will use one of Atari's currencies, specifically Atari Coin, as a payment option for digital entertainment ranging from video games to music.
The second digital coin, Pong Tokens, are slated to strengthen a partnership between Atari and Pariplay. That partnership is set to give birth to a digital casino later this year that will accept either traditional money or cryptocurrencies. Pong Tokens are imagined with this application in mind and are intended for use on crypto-coin and gambling sites.
“Blockchain technology is poised to take a very important place in our environment and to transform, if not revolutionize, the current economic ecosystem, especially in the areas of the video game industry and online transactions,” said Atari chairman and CEO Fredric Chesnais in a statement translated by Bloomberg. “Our aim is to take strategic positions with a limited cash risk, in order to best create value with the assets and the Atari brand.”
Bloomberg reports that shares in Atari have risen by 60 percent following the release of details about its crypto-aspirations as it joins companies like Kodak in the creation of brand-backed digital currency.