Tencent pulls hit game DnF Mobile from app stores of Huawei, Oppo and Vivo in sign of dispute

DnF Mobile will no longer be available on some Android platforms from Thursday, according to a notice released on Wednesday by the game's operating team. The affected app stores - including those of Huawei, Oppo and Vivo - were identified on the same day in a report by Chinese media outlet 21st Century Business Herald, which cited anonymous sources.

The DnF Mobile team recommended that new users on Android systems download the game from its official website amid "adjustments in our cooperation with certain app stores". As such, these users would still be able to complete a major upgrade scheduled on Thursday within the game's app.

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Tencent did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday.

Dungeon & Fighter Mobile is a multiplayer, action role-playing game based on the personal computer title Dungeon & Fighter Online, which was first released on the mainland in 2008. alt=Dungeon & Fighter Mobile is a multiplayer, action role-playing game based on the personal computer title Dungeon & Fighter Online, which was first released on the mainland in 2008.>

The removal of DnF Mobile from those Android platforms marks the latest flare-up between large game developers and publishers like Tencent, which runs the world's biggest video gaming business by revenue, and major mainland distribution channels, as gamers increasingly focus on a small number of popular titles.

Tencent's games subsequently reappeared after a few hours on Huawei's app store, with both sides claiming that their dispute was solved "after friendly negotiations". Neither Huawei nor Tencent offered an explanation for what happened.

Android app store operators on the mainland are known for sometimes taking up to 50 per cent of a video game's revenue as commission.

Still, suspending the availability of popular titles like DnF Mobile from certain app stores could cast some uncertainty to the domestic video gaming industry, which is trying to regain momentum after a lengthy regulatory crackdown on the internet sector.

Following its launch on May 21, DnF Mobile is expected to gross around 6 billion yuan (US$827 million) in a year, according to a recent note by investment bank Jefferies.

The mobile version of Dungeon & Fighter Online, the personal computer game developed by Nexon subsidiary Neople, provides a much-needed shot in the arm for Tencent's video gaming business on the mainland, which recorded a 2 per cent year-on-year decline in first-quarter revenue to 34.5 billion yuan.

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