The week started with a deal for Microsoft. After it said “pass” to buying the infamous #TikTok, Microsoft set its eyes on ZeniMax Media-an American company specialized in videogames, and the parent company of Bethesda Softworks.
ZeniMax Media is going to cost Microsoft a whopping $7.5 billion. Due to Bethesda's successful franchises such as "Elder Scrolls," "Fallout," and "Doom," Microsoft is expected to get a boost for its Xbox Game Pass. Game Pass is a Netflix-like subscription service, where users have access to more than 100 games and which, for the past three years, has raised Microsoft's gaming revenues. As of today, Game Pass has 15 million subscribers.
From the experts' point of view, the purchase of ZeniMax "instantly increases the value of GamePass and closes the content gap between Xbox and [PlayStation]." It shows the company's focus on growing its user-base. The “game war” between Microsoft and Sony is expected to be boosted by the upcoming release of PS5 and #Xbox Series X.
So far, it is the second most expensive #purchase in the industry after the $8.6 billion paid by Tencent for Supercell.
Following the news, Microsoft closed yesterday’s trading session more than 1% higher. Today, during the pre-market trading hours, it added 1.14%.
Read more about Microsoft’s former interest in TikTok here!
Sources: edition.cnn.com, theverge.com
