Blog: acquisition

Read our latest daily deep dives, hot takes, and exciting updates about the entertainment world. Check out the latest insight from your favourite analyst, or search by coverage areas - music, entertainment and fandom, creator economy and social.

CMA blocking Microsoft from acquiring Activision raises more questions than answers

Karol Severin

27 Apr 2023

Microsoft

m&a

Activision

UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) just announced that it “ prevented Microsoft’s proposed purchase of Activision over concerns the deal would alter the future of the fast-growing cloud gaming market, leading to reduced innovation and less choice for UK gamers over the years to come .

min read

Quick take: Can Rovio give Sega wings in mobile and live services?

Karol Severin

20 Apr 2023

acquisition

rovio

sega

Sega is acquiring Rovio, and from my perspective, this deal makes sense for both sides. We are experiencing another step in the games industry’s wider consolidation journey, as cross-platform (i.e., mobile, pc, console, TV, etc.

min read

Time for diversification for Take-Two as it bids to acquire Zynga

Karol Severin

12 Jan 2022

take two interactive

Zynga

acquisition

Take-Two Interactive announced an acquisition deal to buy Zynga (pending a 45-day shopping window for Zynga) for $12.7billion. The deal Who got a great deal? It depends on who you ask. It worked out well for the founder and early backers in the end , while those who bought into the company on the da...

min read

The internationalisation of content: What it means when local goes global

Hanna Kahlert

8 Dec 2021

internationalisation

Content

podcast

Digital-first life has broken down cultural borders, allowing content and fans from all over the world to spread far and wide on both a niche and mainstream level. It is now possible for small independent artists to have substantial yet geographically disparate global fanbases, and for mainstream ar...

min read

Labels could have helped Epic reimagine music – now Harmonix will do it instead

Karol Severin

25 Nov 2021

music industry

Games industry

Epic Games

Epic Games announced it is acquiring Harmonix, the maker of Rock Band. While this makes sense for the Fortnite maker and its entertainment metaverse, it has the risk of diluting the potential music expertise that labels and other music companies could (and should) offer to games partners.

min read

UGC vs. Premium: Is the video valuation bubble big enough to burst?

Hanna Kahlert

21 May 2021

Media

Streaming

Mobile content

The market disconnect between the proliferation of independent content creators and the consolidation of brand IP into the hands of ever-fewer major players is growing increasingly stark. On the one hand, independent artists are the fastest-growing sector of the music market.

min read

Quick take: Epic doubles down on expression and creation with the acquisition of ArtStation

Karol Severin

10 May 2021

acquisition

m&a

Epic Games

Epic Games embarked on the journey of attracting third-party developers a while ago , but it has now made a significant step towards building up a go-to marketplace and distribution centre for designers and creators of digital art and in-game items.

min read

Microsoft’s interest in Discord confirms MIDiA’s prediction

Karol Severin

31 Mar 2021

acquisition

Microsoft

Discord

In November 2020, we wrote the below in our annual predictions report . “Upping gaming experiences via ‘infrastructural acquisitions’: As non-gaming entertainment increasingly embeds in games, companies will look to upgrade their ecosystems to cater beyond consumers’ gaming needs and instead...

min read

Microsoft’s Zenimax acquisition is about the future of Games Pass more than console sales

Karol Severin

30 Sep 2020

Games

games consoles

Zenimax

With the acquisition of ZeniMax Media, Microsoft is gaining an important content asset for its portfolio – Bethesda’s games. And while the timing of the announcement certainly won’t make Sony too happy as it is about to launch PS5, the key benefits of this acquisition are tied to the future of...

min read

FuboTV adds key sporting rights to portfolio following Disney deal

Alistair Taylor

2 Jul 2020

Fubo

FuboTV

Sporting rights

FuboTV, the US over-the-top (OTT) internet-delivered TV service launched back in January 2015 as a soccer-centric proposition. In that time it has established itself as a niche distributor of live streams of MLS and LatAm soccer matches to US, Canadian and Spanish audiences.

min read

Is the UFC doing a Fox, and cashing in on content?

Alistair Taylor

31 May 2018

acquisition

content provider

digital content

Last week, Disney-owned ESPN acquired the exclusive rights to show the UFC tournament in the US for $1.5 billion over five years. The deal will see the UFC earn $184 million more each year than the previous deal with Fox, which begs the question; is the UFC mimicking Fox’s strategy and cashing in ...

min read

Quick Take: Amazon’s Whole Foods Acquisition Is A Major Coup For Voice Control Commerce

Zach Fuller

16 Jun 2017

acquisition

Alexa

Amazon

In the hours following the announcement of Amazon’s $13.7 billion acquisition of American supermarket chain Whole Foods, much of the immediate attention is currently focused on how the e-commerce giant will disrupt the food and grocery brick-and-mortar retail experience.

min read

Vivendi-Havas: A Music Industry Perspective

Zach Fuller

18 May 2017

Access Industries

acquisition

dailymotion

After a quiet period in which music and media assets in general were perceived to be in irreversible decline, the narrative is suddenly changing. The boost in revenue from streaming and the allure of consistent income that comes with the transition to recurring subscription revenue seems to have pro...

min read