Electronic Arts will acquire mobile game studio Glu Mobile for $ 2.1 billion. Presentation On Monday, this will be one of the most expensive video game acquisitions in history.
Glu Mobile, as the name implies, is a mobile game development studio with several blockbuster franchises in its name: Diner Dash, Disney Sorceror’s Arena, WWE Universe, TapSports Baseball ’20, Kim Kardashian Hollywood, Deer Hunter and more.
EA has shown a clear interest in developing the mobile gaming business through acquisitions. Glu Mobile reports that the game catalog has won over $ 1.32 billion in bookings over the past year. EA says the reasons for acquiring Glu Mobile include expanding its mobile gaming portfolio to sports, RPG, lifestyle, casual, and “mid-core” games.
As part of the agreement, Glu Mobile will have access to EA’s global licensing and distribution features. Glu Mobile’s experience in monetizing sports and casual games is also of interest to EA.
Andrew Wilson, CEO of Electronic Arts, said: “Mobile continues to grow as the world’s largest gaming platform, and the addition of Glu’s gaming and talent has doubled the size of our mobile business. Our deep IP portfolio and growing global audience make it a player. It provides an even more exciting experience and drives the further growth of Electronic Arts. “
The acquisition brings Glu Mobile’s 500 game developers (and a total of about 800 employees) under the umbrella of EA.
EA has recently wept over the acquisition of Game Studio. The company defeated Take-Two Interactive and acquired DiRT developer Codemasters for $ 1.2 billion in January.
The acquisition has been dwarfed by some fairly large grabs, but still stands as one of the most expensive in history.by Statista, Tencent has acquired Clash Royale developer Supercell for $ 8.6 billion. Microsoft acquired ZeniMax Media (the parent company of Bethesda, id Software, Arkane, MachineGames, and Tango) for $ 7.5 billion in 2020. Activision acquired Candy Crush developer King for $ 5.9 billion in 2016, and Microsoft acquired Minecraft developer Mojang for $ 2.5 billion in 2014.
EA’s acquisition of GluMobile is superior to other business transactions, including Facebook’s acquisition of Oculus VR ($ 2 billion), Zynga’s acquisition of Peak ($ 1.8 billion), and Bandai’s acquisition of Namco.
EA previously purchased the Popcap game, the developer of Plants vs. Zombies and Bejeweled, for $ 750 million in 2012. The acquisition of Popcap eventually resulted in Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare 1 and 2, and Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville.
The acquisition of Glu Mobile is expected to close on June 30, 2021, subject to all required approvals.
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