Japanese conglomerate Sony has suffered a £14.7bn loss after rivals Microsoft announced their plans to buy video game holding company, Activision Blizzard. Activision Blizzard, which publishes the popular Call of Duty franchise, has accepted a £50.6bn cash deal with Microsoft – the biggest to be made in tech-gaming history.
Sony Shares Fall By 13%
The Sony share price responded by seeing the biggest fall since the 2008 Financial Crash and shot down by 13%.
The fall came as investors reacted to Microsoft’s takeover of Activision Blizzard, and the possibility that hit games could be made exclusive to Microsoft’s Xbox in the future.
Whilst speculation is still out on whether Microsoft will make hit gaming franchise Call of Duty exclusive to its platforms, the scale of their offer to Activision Blizzard looks set to change the layout of the tech and gaming industries.
Video Game Shares Rise In Response
As Microsoft and Activision Blizzard make tech history with their deal, video game holding company shares are rising as investor interest peaks.
Electronic Arts, who make Fifa, and Take-Two Interactive, the makers of Grand Theft Auto, have seen a rise in their shares, whilst shares in Assassin’s Creed makers Ubisoft are up nearly 12%.
Microsoft’s plans to buy Activision Blizzard come after they also purchased gaming icons Bethesda for $7.5bn, suggesting that they are aiming to expand their gaming offer across multiple devices in the metaverse.
How Will Sony Respond?
Even with their acquisition of Activision Blizzard, Microsoft are only the third largest gaming company in the world – behind Tencent and Sony.
Even so, it will be interesting to see how Sony respond to their competitor expanding their reach in the gaming sector.
The gaming sector and wider leisure and entertainment markets, will be noteworthy areas to watch for active traders looking for opportunities with high liquidity and trading volume.