Rumors that EA is seeking a buyer have been circulating on and off for a decade now. Long before it paid $7.5 billion for ZeniMax and $68.7 billion for Activision Blizzard, Microsoft was put forward as a potential buyer. There were also claims that Sony would respond to the latter acquisition by purchasing EA, but it eventually chose Bungie for $3.6 billion.
Rumors that it was about to be acquired saw EA’s share price jump around 15%. It’s falling slightly at the time of writing but remains at $133, up from a high of $127 yesterday. Given the consolidation of so many massive developers and publishers within the video games industry over the last year and the way EA has searched for buyers for so long, it’s understandable how the rumors have been so readily believed. In related news, last week saw Embracer Group, which already owns THQ Nordic, Gearbox Interactive, Square Enix Montréal, and many more, announced more acquisitions from within the gaming industry, including Limited Run Games and Tripwire Interactive.
