Yesterday we reported that Ubisoft gave an undisclosed number of Asus Nexus 7 tablets to members of the press as part of an "asset kit" during a recent Watch_Dogs preview event in Paris.

Ubisoft responded to our inquiry on the event and confirmed what happened, relaying the company's apology and specifying that freebies of that kind aren't in line with its PR policies.

During a recent Watch Dogs preview event, a number of UK journalists were given gift bags containing a tablet that was preloaded with Watch Dogs videos, screenshots and relevant links. This isn’t in line with our policies for working with journalists who cover our games, as we understand that gifts of this kind might be misconstrued. We apologize for the error and are sorry for any confusion. 

The representative also mentioned that he was present at the event alongside the PR managers of all of Ubisoft's European branches, and that the freebies were an one-sided initiative of the UK branch of the company. The giveaway was not decided by the main office that organized the event, which is why no one else besides the ones directly involved knew anything about it.

There you have it, straight from the lion's mouth. Ultimately, this kind of events happen fairly often in an industry where PR is divided between several branches of a company, some of which often take initiatives without requiring the green light from the main office. At least this didn't get people arrested like other, much more dangerous PR stunts happened in recent times.