Game publisher consolidation seems to be entering another round. Currently, the rumor is doing the rounds that Amazon wants to make an offer for Electronic Arts.
Update 2022-08-29 11:05:
After the article on USA Today caused a great deal of excitement, calm has now set in. CNBC had already rejected the reports and now USA Today has reacted and amended the original report on the same day with the following statement:
“This morning, GLHF – a gaming/eSports outlet and content partner of For The Win – published a version of this story on our website in violation of our editorial standards regarding the use of uncredited and unverified sources. Us have updated this story to remove all mentions of these sources.”
Update 2022-08-26 14:38:
The situation is still somewhat unclear. As the rumor continues to circulate, David Faber, a renowned analyst from CNBC, disagrees, claiming that Amazon won’t make an offer, according to his sources: “I have talked to some people who would actually know if there’s something going on, and they say there’s nothing going on.”
It remains exciting for the time being. Meanwhile, USA Today cites GLHF, a Swedish gaming content agency. The trigger for the original rumor appears to be that Apple has now withdrawn from the takeover talks surrounding EA. Talks between Apple and EA have been going on since May.
Original message 2022-08-26 13:51:
Wow, that comes… not surprising. There have long been rumors that Electronic Arts is about to be taken over by another company, with Apple, Disney and Amazon initially being discussed.
This is now taking concrete form. As USA Today reports, there are serious rumors that Amazon will announce that it is making a formal offer to acquire EA. The corresponding announcement is to be published later today. The whole thing seems very concrete, Electronic Arts is recording one in US premarket trading today Price increase of around 15% and that doesn’t usually happen if there are no specific reasons.
Basically, this would be a smart move for Amazon. Amazon’s games division has been rather bumpy so far and the takeover of EA along with all the studios would mean a powerful boost. In addition, Amazon certainly has enough money to be able to afford the expensive sports licenses from EA (FIFA, NFL, NHL, F1). And that’s not all: Amazon could also use the EA licenses to produce films and series for Prime Video, such as Mass Effect, Dragon Age, Battlefield and many more.
There would certainly not be a lack of funds, Amazon could more or less pay for a purisher like EA out of petty cash. Statements from EA or Amazon are still pending, we will keep you posted.
In September, Amazon is once again putting together a respectable line-up of games via Prime Gaming.
