Pact will allow the French company not only to continue publishing sequels to game franchises like "Splinter Cell," "Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter" and "Endwar" for as long as there's consumer interest, but also produce films, online series, books, or other spin-off properties without the involvement of the famed military author, whose name is above the title of all the games. It can also produce new vidgame under the Clancy moniker.

Deal also gives Ubisoft continued rights to publish "Rainbow Six" games, but not use it in other media, as Clancy already has licensed out that property.

Financial terms weren't disclosed, though CEO Yves Guillemot said Ubisoft paid Clancy a lump sum for the rights and that it was a "substantial" commitment for his company. Clancy-branded games have been among the most successful in Ubisoft's lineup since they started 10 years ago.

Ubisoft has recently been making moves to expand its production capabilities beyond games, including launching a new studio in Montreal focused on animation.

"This gives us the opportunity to create a game and linear entertainment for it at the same time," said Guillemot. "It makes us more of an entertainment company."

Exec said Ubisoft would likely be interested in creating animated Internet shorts and features tied to its Clancy games, but would also potentially license the properties to film studios or book publishers itself.

There was previously a "Splinter Cell" film in development at Paramount and DreamWorks.

Clancy-branded game franchises in Ubisoft's lineup include squad-based military titles "Rainbow Six" and "Ghost Recon" and stealth actioner "Splinter Cell," all of which have had multiple sequels. Launching later this year are futuristic World War III game "EndWar" and an untitled air combat simulator.