One of the largest acquisitions in the history of the gaming industry
Posted: Sun Dec 22, 2024 10:34 am
In January 2022, one of the most important events in recent years in the GameDev market and in the entire history of corporate mergers began. Microsoft - one of the largest companies in the world, with its portfolio of services such as the Azure cloud, Microsoft office or Windows, and with a large share in the video game market - has initiated the acquisition of one of the largest players in the sector. We are talking about Activision Blizzard, known for productions such as Overwatch, Call of Duty, World of Warcraft or Diablo. The amount that Microsoft is willing to pay for Activision reaches the record figure of 68 billion dollars. This is the largest takeover bid in the sector to date. Microsoft has a history of acquiring successful companies to expand its portfolio of services and products. Bill Gates' company has already acquired, for example, LinkedIn (around 26 billion dollars) and Skype (around 8.5 billion dollars). Activision's purchase of Blizzard is therefore a further step towards expanding its hegemony in the technology market and increasing its competitiveness against companies such as Google, Amazon and Apple.
So what does the future of the gaming industry look like in the face of such a major merger, and what does this mean for Sony, Microsoft's biggest competitor in the gaming and console market?
Sony, Playstation and the eternal battle of the consoles
For many years there has been a visible split in the console market between Playstation and Xbox (Nintendo has also joined the fray in recent years with its hugely successful Switch). Until recently, this battle indonesia whatsapp mobile number was usually won by Sony with its product, which had better features at a competitive price and many more exclusive productions. Recently, this trend has changed. Microsoft has invested considerable capital in making the Xbox a more advanced and refined console than before. This strategy has contributed to the popularity of the console and the company's growing share of the gaming sector. The influx of new gamers may have partly driven Microsoft to spend more and more on buying new game development studios to make its console (as well as Windows/PC games) portfolio even more substantial.
Gamepass as the equivalent of Netflix in the video game industry
Another aspect that plays in Microsoft's favour is the huge success of Gamepass, a monthly subscription service that gives access to a huge set of titles that a player can enjoy. This service, comparable to Netflix in the gaming sector, led to a significant increase in Microsoft's revenue from its games and caused many players to switch from Playstation to Xbox. This was partly due to the fact that Sony does not have an equally developed service to compete with Gamepass. Activision's acquisition of Blizzard is key in this regard. By gaining access to the most popular titles, Microsoft can further expand its temporary game access service and thus cause Sony to lose some of its market share. Faced with such a threat, Sony should increase its involvement in the market and pay more attention to customer needs. The company must update its strategy and start offering consumers more competitive prices for its products. An important role in the gaming industry is played by exclusive titles, of which Sony has so far had the most, however, if the acquisition of Blizzard goes ahead, this situation could change and the company could lose a large percentage of market share. However, this scenario is not very likely, as most of the brands acquired by Microsoft are multiplayer games, so turning them into Xbox exclusive titles would significantly reduce the number of players and money that a product could generate for the company. Therefore, the Japanese company needs to break out of its rut and start pricing aggressively against the American giant and invest much more capital in the development of its counterpart Gamepass. So far, Playstation Now, created for this purpose, has not been very successful, as it has neither been promoted properly nor have significant brands from the gaming industry joined it. Microsoft, with its Gamepass service, has adopted a different strategy, expanding it on a fairly regular basis with new titles both niche and high-end. PS Plus is also worth mentioning, which allows subscribers to add new products to their accounts on a monthly basis. The service offered by Sony, however, does not reach the popularity of Gamepass.
The future of th
So what does the future of the gaming industry look like in the face of such a major merger, and what does this mean for Sony, Microsoft's biggest competitor in the gaming and console market?
Sony, Playstation and the eternal battle of the consoles
For many years there has been a visible split in the console market between Playstation and Xbox (Nintendo has also joined the fray in recent years with its hugely successful Switch). Until recently, this battle indonesia whatsapp mobile number was usually won by Sony with its product, which had better features at a competitive price and many more exclusive productions. Recently, this trend has changed. Microsoft has invested considerable capital in making the Xbox a more advanced and refined console than before. This strategy has contributed to the popularity of the console and the company's growing share of the gaming sector. The influx of new gamers may have partly driven Microsoft to spend more and more on buying new game development studios to make its console (as well as Windows/PC games) portfolio even more substantial.
Gamepass as the equivalent of Netflix in the video game industry
Another aspect that plays in Microsoft's favour is the huge success of Gamepass, a monthly subscription service that gives access to a huge set of titles that a player can enjoy. This service, comparable to Netflix in the gaming sector, led to a significant increase in Microsoft's revenue from its games and caused many players to switch from Playstation to Xbox. This was partly due to the fact that Sony does not have an equally developed service to compete with Gamepass. Activision's acquisition of Blizzard is key in this regard. By gaining access to the most popular titles, Microsoft can further expand its temporary game access service and thus cause Sony to lose some of its market share. Faced with such a threat, Sony should increase its involvement in the market and pay more attention to customer needs. The company must update its strategy and start offering consumers more competitive prices for its products. An important role in the gaming industry is played by exclusive titles, of which Sony has so far had the most, however, if the acquisition of Blizzard goes ahead, this situation could change and the company could lose a large percentage of market share. However, this scenario is not very likely, as most of the brands acquired by Microsoft are multiplayer games, so turning them into Xbox exclusive titles would significantly reduce the number of players and money that a product could generate for the company. Therefore, the Japanese company needs to break out of its rut and start pricing aggressively against the American giant and invest much more capital in the development of its counterpart Gamepass. So far, Playstation Now, created for this purpose, has not been very successful, as it has neither been promoted properly nor have significant brands from the gaming industry joined it. Microsoft, with its Gamepass service, has adopted a different strategy, expanding it on a fairly regular basis with new titles both niche and high-end. PS Plus is also worth mentioning, which allows subscribers to add new products to their accounts on a monthly basis. The service offered by Sony, however, does not reach the popularity of Gamepass.
The future of th