Microsoft to buy Activision Blizzard Inc., the video gaming company popularly known for ‘Call of Duty’. The technology giant announced the deal is set for $68.7 billion, the biggest gaming industry acquisition ever, on Tuesday. According to the newly announced CEO of Microsoft Gaming, Phil Spencer mentioned in his email that he sent out to employees within his leadership, after all, regulatory approvals that are pending, the acquisition will close by the financial year of 2023.
In this largely critical era for the ‘metaverse’, this deal is a huge leap for Microsoft corporation as a whole, as it ventures into the consistently growing video gaming market. Not only that, but many of the tech company’s competitors have already placed their cards in the metaverse, which in its simplest explanation is a future of virtual reality where people socialize, work and play all at the same time. This is also going to be the largest all-cash deal of acquisition in history.
Many are calling critical aspects of the deal and how it could go south for Microsoft from the lawmaker’s side. The last share price of Activision’s stock was $82.10, which was up by 26%, reflecting the huge discrepancy between the Microsoft offers and Activision’s market value. This, according to professional lawyers and analysts, could be a dent in the mirror that attracts lawmakers’ scrutiny.
If the deal comes through successfully, it would make Microsoft Gaming the third largest gaming company in the world. A position that piques the lawmakers’ attention plenty. Despite this, Reuters reports that Microsoft is ready to pay a $3 billion break fee if the deal falls through, confident that they can win the antitrust approval. If it works out, however, this deal can work in favor of both the companies and their investors financially. Microsoft’s shares were last down by 1.9%, but Activision’s timing is still worse with the company dealing with several sexual harassment and misconduct allegations within its employees and management. This is probably why analysts also think Microsoft could have a lot to deal with in terms of company culture, addressing the concerns at a corporate level after the acquisition. Since the announcement of Microsoft to buy Activision Blizzard there have been major projections and analyses of the future of both the gaming industry and the virtual world of the ‘metaverse‘, only time will tell where the tech race takes the consumers in the future.
