At 23:59 on June 7, 2022, Tencent's largest game streaming platform Penguin Esports officially ended its online service. Currently, the website of Penguin Esports has changed to the 403 forbidden error, and the mobile app is no longer available for download.
In April this year, Tencent announced that due to its "specific business development strategy", they would stop all services related to Penguin Esports in two months, and the unused virtual currency in users’ accounts would turn into digital coupons that can be used in Tencent's games as compensation.
Back in 2020, Tencent tried to sell Penguin Esports to Douyu, China's largest streaming platform and attempted to get Douyu to merge with Huya, the second-largest, bringing all of China's streaming platforms under Tencent's control. However, this 6 billion USD merger did not succeed, and China's State Administration of Market Regulation stopped Tencent's business practices on the grounds that doing so would create a market monopoly and other pitfalls.
In recent years, with the introduction of the Chinese government's gaming restrictions for minors, China's game market is also seeing shrinkage, with top game development companies heading to overseas markets in search of business opportunities, and Tencent's cessation of Penguin Esports may just be its first step in the future development of the domestic game market.