According to a Puck article dedicated to Comcast CEO Brian Roberts, Electronic Arts is looking for a strong partner to take it to the next level, a desire that would have intensified following the thunderclap at 68 .7 billion volts signed Microsoft and Activision Blizzard. In the middle of mergers and acquisitions, we would have surprised the lawyers and bankers of Electronic Arts talking with those of giants like Disney, Apple and Amazon. But it is with Comcast that the exchanges seem to have been the most concrete until reaching an impasse last month.
Brian Roberts’ proposal? Perform a merger between its subsidiary NBCUniversal, giant of cinema, television and amusement parks, and Electronic Arts. An explosive idea on paper, but also completely unbalanced as the NBCUniversal conglomerate weighs far more heavily than Electronic Arts with its 35,000 employees. Unsurprisingly, the terms of such an operation would therefore have seen the Roberts family take control of the new EA/Universal entity, in the same way that Discovery’s management retained control after its recent mega-merger with WarnerMedia.
However, if the acquisition of Activision Blizzard by Microsoft acts as an ideal exit door for Robert Kotick attacked by the whole world, nothing suggests that his counterpart of Electronic Arts, the dashing Andrew Wilson, has the slightest intention to cede control of his business. Since his appointment in 2013, the 47-year-old CEO has largely responded to the economic growth of the sector and enabled Electronic Arts to achieve its best annual performance, exceeding 6 billion euros in turnover and the billion euros of profit.
“Sources say EA is primarily interested in a merger deal that would see Wilson continue as the combined company’s chief executive.“, indeed indicates the source article. Talks with Comcast reportedly broke down last month due to disagreements over the price and structure of the merger. A Comcast spokesperson declined to comment, while EA said it would not comment on mergers and acquisitions rumors and speculation.