Paying a whopping $2.1 billion to acquire the developer,EArecently purchased GluMobile, the team behind titles such asKim Kardashian: Hollywood, Diner Dash,andDisney Sorcerer’s Arena.The decision adds a new element to the publisher’s already stacked mobile gaming division, with its roster currently including studios such asPopCap Games, Chillingo, Capital Games, and Track Twenty.
According to the company’s CEO, Andrew Wilson, the deal was made so thatEAcould capitalize on the mobile market even further than it already has. Talking to GamesIndustry.biz, Wilson shared his belief that “mobile is the biggest platform in gaming today,” and the acquisition of GluMobile and the other studios it has assembled over the years seeks to capitalize on the potential it offers.
RELATED:EA Acquires Glu Mobile for $2.1 Billion
“With Glu we have an opportunity to bring together teams with complementary product portfolios and capabilities that will lead to even more great games,” Wilson shares during the interview, claiming “we know there are exciting opportunities ahead in mobile, and we want to be in a position to lead.” The statement is reminiscent ofEA’s comments on its recent deal with developer Codemasters, with the publisher revealing during a Q3 financial report that it wants to utilize the studio’s expertise in the racing genre and portfolio of strong IPs to become a global leader in racing games.
As for what EA hopes to offer GluMobile, Wilson claims that the publisher has a variety of resources that the studio can use to “grow their existing games, create amazing new experiences, and bring them to more players.” It seems EA is hyper-focused on the mobile gaming market and wants to bring as many big-name developers as it can onboard to help conquer it. It’s also made clear that no existing projects will be shut down and no staff will be laid off at GluMobile during its transition to EA’s stable of studios. It’s sure to be a profitable venture for the publisher, withKim Kardashian: Hollywoodbecoming a very lucrative mobile release for GluMobile, albeit a controversial one due to its slate of notoriously egregious microtransactions.
As mentioned earlier, this isn’t the first major acquisition EA has made in recent months, with the team also in the final stages of buying Codemasters and its roster of racing franchises.The deal will set the publisher back $1.2 billion and wasapproved through a shareholder vote earlier this month. The studio was originally in talks withGrand Theft Autopublisher Take-Two Interactive prior to its new deal, however, EA swooped in to purchase the team after negotiations fell through. The publisher must now make the purchase official in court before it can fully finalize its deal with the popular developer.
MORE:EA Deciding Whether to Continue or Cancel Anthem 2.0 Soon
