 KilroyPremium,MVM
join:2002-11-21
Ann Arbor, MI | reply to Savant
Re: Vivendi to discuss sale of Activision Blizzard... My question what I saw that was, "Who can afford to buy them?" It would have to be another investment group as Blizzard is probably top dog in the PC gaming, if not all of gaming.
I'd think there was a large loss of revenue due to the Diablo III give away for the yearly subscibers, then again it may have actually gained revenue.
--
When will the people realize that with DRM they aren't purchasing anything? |
|
| said by Kilroy:I'd think there was a large loss of revenue due to the Diablo III give away for the yearly subscibers, then again it may have actually gained revenue. I think you might be right. Blizzard probably either made money or lost money due to Diablo III. 
Are you trying to correlate D3 to Vivendi stock price? |
|
|
|
 DarkLogixTexan and ProudPremium
join:2008-10-23
Baytown, TX
kudos:3 | I think the value is going down due to bad calls on game design lately. |
|
| it's obvious, facebook... you've heard it here first. real id connected to you facebook profile... with links to your character profile.... facebook connecting social media to the masses, or at least to the mass multiplayers. trade chat straight to your wall. |
|
 Snuffboxir nice irlPremium
join:2011-04-15
Milwaukee, WI
kudos:4 | reply to DarkLogix
said by DarkLogix:I think the value is going down due to bad calls on game design lately.
Like? |
|
 Nick DPremium
join:2010-02-04
Orange, CA | reply to gains
I'm not sure if you were actually directly referencing this, but a friend of mine from FB friended me over RealID in Diablo III using a Facebook Friend Finder. The B.net alert referenced the service directly, so I know that's how he got my BattleTag.
I wasn't aware that existed until the request popped up. |
|
 SavantPremium
join:2001-08-12
Toronto | reply to Kilroy
said by Kilroy:My question what I saw that was, "Who can afford to buy them?" It would have to be another investment group as Blizzard is probably top dog in the PC gaming, if not all of gaming. I have one word for you, and it will send shivers up your spine...
Microsoft.
They're probably one of the few game industry companies that have the capital needed to pull off a deal like this. They have plenty of cash, and they have the game division to roll this in to. Microsoft has a market cap of $245billion, revenue in the last fiscal year was $73 billion, and they have $58 billion in cash holdings. The $13 billion of Activision Blizzard holdings would not be painful to acquire.
The COD franchise is worth huge bucks alone. Given the competition with consoles, can you imagine the coup if they could make COD an Xbox exclusive title?
Microsoft could make a LOT of hay with this. I expect that they are seriously watching this.
Who would NOT be able to pull it off? Not EA, they don't have the resources. Neither Ubisoft, Valve, Take Two or Zenimax (they own Bethesda & id software). The only other possible game-related suitors would be Sony and Nintendo, but it would literally drain them dry to pull it off, so that's doubtful. Warner Brothers (publishers of LOTRO, the F.E.A.R. series and the Batman Arkham series) might also be interested, but they have a crap load of debt ~$20 billion) so I don't think they can risk taking on more.
After this it falls to non-game related firms, so you never know.
I'd think there was a large loss of revenue due to the Diablo III give away for the yearly subscibers, then again it may have actually gained revenue.
quote:
Activision, based in Santa Monica, California, is Vivendi’s fourth-biggest business, with sales of $4.76 billion last year. Shares of the world’s largest video-game publisher have gained 4.5 percent in the past year before today, outperforming Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) and Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. (TTWO), helped by demand for the “Call of Duty” shooter franchise.
Activision was Vivendi’s second-fastest growing unit last year, after Brazilian phone operator GVT. The video-game publisher reported 2011 earnings, excluding taxes, of $1.33 billion, or 28 percent of sales.
Yeah, I don't think revenue is a problem when you consider they are kicking EA's ass, and EA is probably their biggest direct competition.
--
Attack the words, not the writer... |
|
 MikePremium,Mod
join:2000-09-17
Pittsburgh, PA
kudos:1 | Games for Windows Live + Real ID merger.
I said it. |
|
SavantPremium
join:2001-08-12
Toronto | said by Mike:Games for Windows Live + Real ID merger.
I said it.
Precisely. Microsoft has been trying for the better part of the last decade to break back in to the PC game market, after they foolishly became too focused on the Xbox market and let the PC games market slip away from them.
They keep trying to reinvent 'Games for Windows' as a marketplace, but they have 'launched' it 3 times, and every time the public has given it a big 'meh'. Tapping in to the Activision/Blizzard customer base would allow them to rebrand 'Read ID' into 'Microsoft Real ID', which they could roll in the xbox live accounts into.
The only question mark would be if this would be considered 'anti-competitive', but even that would be hard to suggest given how many big players there are out there.
It's certainly something to watch, and it will still depend on whether Vivendi wants to sell.
--
Attack the words, not the writer... |
|
 KrisnatharokCaveat EmptorPremium
join:2009-02-11
Earth Orbit
kudos:7 | The public would give more of a crap if they didn't yank Halo off PC. When the company that owns Windows can't even develop a game of theirs for Windows, the consumers already received and understood the only message that mattered.
--
If we lose this freedom of ours, history will record with the greatest astonishment, those who had the most to lose, did the least to prevent its happening. |
|
SavantPremium
join:2001-08-12
Toronto | said by Krisnatharok:The public would give more of a crap if they didn't yank Halo off PC. When the company that owns Windows can't even develop a game of theirs for Windows, the consumers already received and understood the only message that mattered. I fully agree.
I was beta testing for Microsoft back when PC Games were still the focus for them, and I remember the original Halo beta. Back then they released Halo on Xbox, and then took two full years before they released it on PC & Mac. With Halo 2 it was again released on Xbox first, and then on the PC 2½ years later. After that they gave up on 'porting' Halo to the PC at all.
Yet while they refuse to release Halo on the PC anymore, they keep saying that they want to win PC gamers back. EA says the same thing, and they too have had 'console exclusive' releases as well.
Seeing as how Microsoft doesn't have the PC games base anymore, it only makes sense that they would be very interested in 'buying' it. If they could purchase Activision/Blizzard it would give them a huge presence in the PC games market again, and they could easily build on that.
Given the profitability of Activision/Blizzard, the risk would be low. If Activision/Blizzard goes on the market, I would be very surprised if Microsoft didn't make a play for it. (assuming that it isn't horridly overpriced.)
--
Attack the words, not the writer... |
|
 TimePremium
join:2003-07-05 | reply to Kilroy
said by Kilroy:My question what I saw that was, "Who can afford to buy them?" It would have to be another investment group as Blizzard is probably top dog in the PC gaming, if not all of gaming. Disney.
--
"If it can't be done with brains, it can't be done with hours" - Clarence "Kelly" Johnson |
|
SavantPremium
join:2001-08-12
Toronto | said by Time:said by Kilroy:My question what I saw that was, "Who can afford to buy them?" Disney. Naw. While they have the revenue, they have too much debt right now. (Disney's Market cap is roughly $80 billion, on $40 billion in revenue, with only $4 billion in cash and $16 billion in debt) Plus I don't think Disney would be keen on associating their brand with COD and other violent imagery.
--
Attack the words, not the writer... |
|
| Disney owns ABC, plus releases movies under the Touchstone Pictures and Hollywood Pictures brands - these are for the more adult/mature audiences. They also acquired Marvel 3 years ago. Many of the titles released under those brands contain violent imagery, so continuing to release the same types of products under the existing name - and without a Disney logo in sight - would not be out of character for them. If, of course, they bought Act/Blizz.
--
When the ship lifts, all bills are paid. No regrets. |
|
 SnakeoilIgnore Button. The coward's feature.Premium
join:2000-08-05
Mentor, OH
kudos:1 | reply to Kilroy
EA may have it's bean counters looking for money.
Can you imagine if EA buys Blizzard? |
|
SnakeoilIgnore Button. The coward's feature.Premium
join:2000-08-05
Mentor, OH
kudos:1 Reviews:
 ·RoadRunner Cable
 ·magicjack.com
| reply to gains
I find it hilarious.
People cry about lack of privacy on he internet all the time but:
1]They hop onto Cloud storage. Anything stored on someone else's hard drives is no longer private, IMO.
2]They send e-mails [like your company warns you, e-mails can be read at at anytime they feel the need to check them. Something with the internet service provider/e-mail service you use at home.
3]Willingly post pictures and updates about what they are up to on social media sites. But yet have a "melt" down because phone manufacturer/cell phone companies/retailer track their movements.
4]Using Real ID or it's like. So instead of 100 different passwords you just use one, to log into all your sites [facebook, twitter, dslreports]. The only time I've used Real ID [I think it's a Blizzard thing] is to chat with my kids in WOW. Outside of that I don't share my e-mail or ID with anyone.
--
Is a person a failure for doing nothing? Or is he a failure for trying, and not succeeding at what he is attempting to do? What did you fail at today?. |
|
SnakeoilIgnore Button. The coward's feature.Premium
join:2000-08-05
Mentor, OH
kudos:1 Reviews:
·RoadRunner Cable
·magicjack.com
| reply to Savant
Microsoft had a game division a few years ago, didn't they?
They released games like Crimson Skies and Starlancer?
It's been a long time since I purchased a game for the PC, I dunno if Microsoft is still in the PC game business or not.
Hmmm..
Which reminds me.
So you think EA lacks the juice, but think that Microsoft has the juice.
What about Apple? They have the juice, and I don't think they have a "pure" game developing company.
With the high sales of idevices, imagine porting games like wow to a Ipad. Granted you'd need to use a blue tooth controller, but still WOW on the Ipad.
--
Is a person a failure for doing nothing? Or is he a failure for trying, and not succeeding at what he is attempting to do? What did you fail at today?. |
|
SnakeoilIgnore Button. The coward's feature.Premium
join:2000-08-05
Mentor, OH
kudos:1 Reviews:
·RoadRunner Cable
·magicjack.com
| reply to Savant
quote:
Plus I don't think Disney would be keen on associating their brand with COD and other violent imagery.
Maybe not directly. But John Carter carries the Disney name [It's a violent film, and it made it's money. From what I read a couple of weeks ago, John Carter isn't the dud that Disney and others made it out to be.]
But Disney also owns Marvel Studios. Which released The Avengers this year. Again, not a typical Disney thing.
They used to own Miramax [1993-2010]. Miramax released some voilent titles as well. Disney owns Touchstone pictures.
--
Is a person a failure for doing nothing? Or is he a failure for trying, and not succeeding at what he is attempting to do? What did you fail at today?. |
|
pandoraPremium
join:2001-06-01
Outland
kudos:1 Reviews:
·Google Voice
·Comcast
·ooma
·Future Nine Corp..
| reply to Savant
said by Savant:I have one word for you, and it will send shivers up your spine...
Microsoft.
I'd be fine with Microsoft. A sale to Microsoft would likely mean eventual console support for WoW and Diablo. Microsoft has a history of PC and video game development and support. They would be one of the few companies that could reasonably integrate with Blizzard imo.
The other folks walking around with cash are Apple and Google. I don't see Blizzard as a very good fit with either ... unless Google wants to get a large toe into the online video game market.
I'm a bit surprised that Blizzard would be up for sale as it seems to be a cash cow ... is WoW losing more subscriptions than Blizzard admits? Is the cost of support high relative to the monthly subscription?
Google wants most software to be open source and free or low cost. If Google owned Blizzard the monthly subscription could go, along with support, and staff to investigate online issues. The support needed by users of current Blizzard products is probably greater than all customer support google provides no for everything they offer.
Apple probably has the cash, but wouldn't be a good fit with Blizzard. Their hardware is weak, their experience with games is a bit limited. A weak hardware platform and small expertise with online games and support, plus cautious management probably mitigate against Apple being a buyer.
I don't think Nintendo or Sony can afford Blizzard at this time. Disney is trying to recover, I don't think it has excess capital, but in the past it has done massive leveraged deals that were unexpected.
IMO the worst buyer of Blizzard would be Disney for us as consumers. The best would be Microsoft. So shivers ... only if Disney or Google are the buyer.
--
"People demand freedom of speech as a compensation for the freedom of thought which they seldom use." |
|
SavantPremium
join:2001-08-12
Toronto | reply to Snakeoil
said by Snakeoil:EA may have it's bean counters looking for money. Can you imagine if EA buys Blizzard? Would never happen. They just don't have the money. They only have a market cap of $4.2 billion, on revenues of $4.1 billion, and cash reserves of $1.85 billion. When Blizzard Activision is worth $13.5 billion, it would take far too much to pull this off.
said by Snakeoil:Microsoft had a game division a few years ago, didn't they?
They released games like Crimson Skies and Starlancer?
It's been a long time since I purchased a game for the PC, I dunno if Microsoft is still in the PC game business or not. Yeah, but it's only a shadow of what it used to be. You can see a list of their titles going back to 2008 here. Almost all of them are Xbox games. The only one missing from that list is Microsoft Flight. Any other games you might see from Microsoft are made by third-party studios.
So you think EA lacks the juice, but think that Microsoft has the juice.
What about Apple? They have the juice, and I don't think they have a "pure" game developing company.
--
Attack the words, not the writer... |
|
