Sony to buy video game maker Bungie in $3.6 billion deal as industry consolidation heats up

Narasi.net – A gamer plays the video game ‘Destiny 2’ developed by Bungie Studios and published by Activision during ‘Paris Games Week’ on October 31, 2017 in Paris, France.

Sony Interactive Entertainment has agreed to acquire private video game developer Bungie for $3.6 billion, increasing industry consolidation activity this month.

Bungie is the company behind the multiplayer shooter games Destiny and Halo, most recently in development until 2010.

Bungie was acquired by Microsoft in 2000 and split from the company in 2007. Although smaller, it came from Take-Two Interactive’s $12.7 billion deal to Zynga and Activision Blizzard’s $69 billion acquisition of Microsoft, Sony agreed to buy the company that, with Halo, helped launch Microsoft’s first Xbox in 2001.

All three video game deals were announced in January. Tech companies are increasingly interested in gaming as they want to expand their audience and prepare for future iterations of virtual and augmented reality devices.

Sony shares were up roughly 4.5% for the day at 4:30 pm. et. Bungie will continue to operate independently within Sony, according to a statement.

The video game developer’s latest hit is Destiny 2, which will continue to be offered across multiple systems. The Halo franchise has been in development by Microsoft’s 343 Industries since 2011.
Its newest game, Halo Infinite, launches on Xbox and Windows in 2021.

“Bungie has created and continues to develop some of the most beloved video game franchises in the world and, by aligning its values ​​with people’s desire to share gaming experience, they unite millions of people around the world,” said Kenichiro Yoshida, Sony Group Corp.

chairman, president and CEO, in a statement. Sony Interactive Entertainment, which develops the Playstation and is based in San Mateo, California, is a corporate subsidiary of Sony Group Corp.