LOS ANGELES (AP) – Activision’s deal unveiled Tuesday to acquire “Candy Crush” publisher King Entertainment for $5.9 billion eclipses several recent video game industry acquisitions. A closer look at how these mash-ups are impacting the interactive industry:
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ACTIVISION BLIZZARD AND KING: The publisher of the successful “Call of Duty,” ”Skylanders” and “Guitar Hero” series will be adding another popular – but not growing – franchise to its arsenal: “Candy Crush.” Activision Blizzard’s $5.9 billion purchase of mobile game maker King Entertainment would sweeten the publisher’s push into mobile gaming in recent years, following the release of “Call of Duty” and “Skylanders” editions for portable devices.
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MICROSOFT AND MOJANG: The maker of Windows operating systems and Xbox game consoles constructed the $2.5 billion purchase of “Minecraft” developer Mojang in 2014. Microsoft quickly begun incorporating the brick-building game series into its new products with the release of a Windows 10 edition of “Minecraft,” as well as demonstrating an augmented reality rendition for use with its prototype HoloLens headset at industry trade events this year.