Microsoft is close to acquiring Mojang AB, best-known for developing the “Minecraft” video game, in a massive deal worth an estimated $2 billion, according to The Wall Street Journal.
The report said the deal could happen as early as this week.
Mojang is a Swedish company that has sold over 50 million copies of “Minecraft,” a Lego-style video game where players build blocky structures. Its profit was over $100 million last year, as it's also been generating sales in licensing deals with Lego and Warner Bros. Pictures, the WSJ said.
If the deal happens, it would be Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella’s first multi-billion dollar acquisition since taking the lead role of the company in February.
It’s also a somewhat unexpected move, since Nadella has been saying Microsoft would become a “productivity and platforms” company. Microsoft does have a huge video games business that includes Xbox consoles, but its $6.7 billion sales last year was just 8% of Microsoft’s total revenue.
But the WSJ argues that the Mojang acquisition could give Microsoft access to "a new generation of people," a market segment that it hasn’t really been able to tap into. It would also be a huge turn of events for Mojang’s founder, Markus Persson, who’s known for rejecting outside investment and his firm stance against big corporations.
It also noted that “Minecraft” is one of the top five most-downloaded paid apps on both Apple and Google’s app stores, and has attracted billions of viewers on the online game streaming site, Twitch.
