What you need to know
- A new report says that Electronic Arts is actively pursuing a sale or merger.
- The California outfit is one of the world's largest video game companies.
- Apple, Disney, Amazon, and Comcast have already reportedly held talks with EA.
A new report says that Apple is one of several companies that have held talks with EA about a possible acquisition of the company behind Battlefield, EA Sports, Mass Effect, and more.
A paywalled Puck report via our friends at GamesRadar+ says that EA "has been persistent in pursuing a sale". From GR:
According to a new report by Puck, Brian Roberts, CEO of NBC parent company Comcast, approached EA CEO Andrew Wilson with a proposal to make the media and gaming giants one behemoth of an entertainment company. The deal would've gave the Roberts family controlling interest of the company, with Wilson running the show presumably as CEO. In the version of the deal most seriously discussed, NBCUniversal CEO Jeff Shell would've been promoted to a higher-up post at Comcast. The deal reportedly fell through due to cost and structure disagreements.
The report goes on to say that EA has also held talks with Disney, Apple, and Amazon about a possible merger, however no further details were offered about the nature of these talks or when they occurred. As Jeff Grubb noted on Twitter, "everyone is always talking to everybody" and EA has likely spoken to more companies than are listed here. The report says EA has been "emboldened" in the wake of the Microsoft Activision deal.
EA is one of the world's largest video game companies, and any acquisition would give a buyer control over some of the most potent IP in the gaming market, notably all of its EA Sports franchises, Battlefield, and more.
