Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella continues to take over large companies at an impressive rate. Since taking over in 2014, the software giant has acquired game studio Minecraft for $2.5 billion, social networking site LinkedIn for $26 billion, and speech recognition software and technology developer Nuance for $20 billion. , as well as Activision Blizzard for a record $69 billion. Reuters believes Netflix could be Microsoft’s next target.
To date, Microsoft has concentrated all its efforts on closing the deal with Activision, which is closely watched by antitrust authorities from around the world. Some of them are concerned about the company’s possible dominance in the gaming market. However, even if Nadella loses and his company ultimately fails to win regulatory approval, owning Netflix would make strategic sense.
Both companies are closely related to each other. Netflix has chosen Microsoft as an advertising partner for a new ad-supported subscription service, and Microsoft President Brad Smith is on the Netflix Board of Directors. The streaming service could prove useful to the software giant as it wants to offer a video game streaming service on multiple devices, and Netflix has big plans for games too. In 2022, the company, led by Reed Hastings, acquired developer Spry Fox, its sixth studio. The merger with Microsoft will only deepen those ambitions, allowing Netflix to bundle online TV, movies, series and games into its package.
With a market value that is 13 times that of Netflix, Microsoft can comfortably afford such a purchase. The streaming service is currently valued at nearly $190 billion.
Source: Trash Box
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