Today big gaming news comes from an unlikely source; weekly financial newspaper, Barron's. This week they speculate that Apple is in the market for a huge acquisition; naming Sony, Electronic Arts, and Disney as possible targets.
It is no secret that Apple are huge. What may come as a surprise is how large they really are. According to Barron's Apple has become the second largest company in the world; only eclipsed by ExxonMobile. Even more surprising, the technology giant is catching up to the big oil baron. Like all oversized companies, it is Apple's goal to continue their growth, and they have the money to do so. The tech giant has 51 billion dollars to invest in an acquisition. Which is enough to buy Sony or Disney.
It has been well known that Apple has been seeking ways to make inroads into the lucrative gaming market. With a market cap of 33 billion dollars, a strong brand, and high quality first party development teams, Sony seems like a smart and affordable acquisition. In addition, Sony comes with a huge manufacturing component that will help Apple bring manufacturing of their goods in-house. Other perks include a strong media distribution presence and licensing perks from Blu-ray discs. For Apple, these perks may just outweigh the headaches of Sony's persistent red ink and less profitable divisions.
Electronic Arts is also affordable, but only gives Apple a single benefit. Disney on the other hand may simply be too expensive, but does have business in video games and media distribution, and comes with a household name.
With 51 billion dollars to throw around, it would be interesting to see what strategy emerges from Cupertino, CA. We can be assured that it will be big and surprising, which is Steve Job's 'MO'.
I think in a way it's the legacy of Shawn Fanning and Napster. Put very simply, while Sony as music corporation opposed and resisted the change in the way consumers obtained music, Apple delivered itunes and ipods as a way of turning the bl...ack music market into a legitimate moneyspinner again. Having created the ipod market (the people who in the past would have had Sony Walkmen), Apple used it to take on Sony Ericsson, Nokia and the like with the iPhone. With the development of flash and youtube on the internet, Apple stayed relevant with mp4 and things like Apple trailers, while Sony during this time, unable to match Apple's amazing product development, have stuck with gaming consoles.
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