The video game market is consolidating like never before, and Electronic Arts is faltering like everyone else. That battlefield and FIFA The manufacturer has recently sought a merger with NBCUniversal and has reportedly also been in talks about possible acquisitions with Disney, Apple and other companies a new report from puck. While no deal is currently in the works, it doesn’t sound like EA is giving up any time soon.
“In recent years, as media companies have taken a greater interest in the fast-growing games industry, Wilson and Electronic Arts have held discussions with a variety of prospects, including Disney, Apple and Amazon. Sources with knowledge of these conversations told me: ” wrote puck‘s veteran media reporter Dylan Beyers. “Several sources familiar with these talks say EA is doggedly looking to sell and has only become more emboldened in the wake of the Microsoft Activision deal. Others say EA is primarily interested in a merger agreement that would allow Wilson to remain CEO of the combined company.”
But it was apparently a deal with NBCUniversal that got the furthest. According to Beyers, Comcast CEO Brian Roberts wanted to spin off the entertainment conglomerate into a separate entity with EA, with one version of the deal remaining current EA CEO Andrew Wilson responsible for the new mega business. However, the negotiations finally collapsed because of the price.
“We do not comment on merger and acquisition-related rumors and speculation,” said EA spokesman John Reseburg my box in an opinion. “We’re proud to operate from a position of strength and growth, with a portfolio of amazing games built on powerful intellectual properties, developed by incredibly talented teams, and a network of more than half a billion players. We see a very bright future ahead of us.”
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The past year has seen a spate of video game studio acquisitions, which have been ramped up the following January Grand Theft Auto Publisher Take-Two announced that it is buying Zynga for $12.7 billion and Microsoft announced purchase intentions call of Duty Manufacturer Activision Blizzard for $69 billion. Sony followed weeks later with a deal to buy the rear studio destiny 2bungie, for $3.6 billiona price that some analysts saw as grossly inflated and possibly a sign of a new frenzied rush for consolidation among the gaming industry’s biggest players.
In a earnings call in February, Andrew Wilson hinted that the company was more focused on acquisitions than acquisitions. As evidence, EA 5 billion dollars spent bought out studios last year to increase its size. But now it appears the publisher has been aggressively pursuing other avenues of scale. Beyers reports that Wilson only reached out to Disney in March “searching for what sources have described as ‘a more meaningful relationship’ than licensing deals.”
This news comes as EA has lost or abandoned some of its largest existing licensing deals. While the publisher recently revealed three new war of stars Games currently in productionincluding a new one Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order This is It is rumored to be out in early 2023his exclusivity deal with Disney for the war of stars The license will not be renewed if it expires in 2023. That allows competitors like Quantic Dream and Ubisoft to announce their own big ones war of stars projects. EA also announced last week that it was ending its similar 10-year exclusivity deal with FIFA and will do so from 2023 Rebranding of its blockbuster soccer franchise EA Sports FC.
Whatever EA’s future holds, a major concern with consolidation is how it will ultimately affect employees at those companies. Even as EA reported another profitable year, my box recently learned that a cherished 200 customer service employees will be laid off. According to four of the affected employees, their work will be outsourced to cheaper third-party companies in Romania and India.
Comcast, Disney and Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
