Top of the Great Era

Zhou Buqi felt that this might be the case, so he asked, "What about before? Did EA pay attention to Codemasters before?"

Christensen shook his head, "No."

"No?" Zhou Buqi asked again, "Are you sure?"

Christensen said: "I didn't know before. I didn't know that EA had bid with us. I thought it was a one-way connection between Changyou and Codemasters. But this morning they came to notify that EA issued a 2.7 million pound bid. There was no way to hide the official offer. I asked Codemasters about the details, and they explained it.”

Zhou Buqi asked: "How is it?"

Ms. Christensen sighed: "Actually, as early as the 16th of last month, EA got in touch with them..."

"Wait!" Zhou Buqi immediately grasped the moment, "Number 16?"

"Correct."

"That is, after Zynga went public and broke, game stocks crashed, and EA's stock price plummeted, they started to act."

Zhou Buqi narrowed his eyes.

It is basically certain that EA is deliberately targeting him.

Christensen nodded, "Yes, it was that time. Codemasters also said that because EA's stock price plummeted, they took urgent action and wanted to win the recognition of the capital market through acquisitions. Racing games are in-game EA owns the "Need for Speed" series, and if it successfully acquires Codemasters, EA will become the largest manufacturer of racing games."

Zhou Buqi didn't think so, "That's not a reason."

Christensen said with a smile: "I know, EA should be against you... EA suffered a lot in the case of the friend's studio. Especially after Zynga's listing, the market value did not meet expectations, and even the stock price broke soon. This is To make EA worse, the board of directors has been under great pressure, and it is said that their CEO is about to be replaced."

Zhou Buqi let out a "huh".

It is clear.

This is a dog jumping over the wall.

But then again, in the case of the friend's studio, EA really suffered a trick.It’s nothing more than spending $18 billion to buy this social game studio, and Ziweixing International sold all EA’s shares at a high level.

At this moment, everyone saw EA's joke, and they all knew that EA's board of directors became a receiver of inferior assets like a fool.

As long as the friend studio is a high-quality asset, can Ziwei Star sell EA shares in such a hurry?Don't you just think that EA has lost its future potential, and you have to get rid of the relationship early?
EA is very embarrassed now, seeing that the market value is about to drop to less than 100 billion US dollars.

Initiating an acquisition invitation to Codemasters this time is really a bit detrimental to others, as if deliberately disgusting and swimming.

Zhou Buqi asked: "EA is real this time? Is it really going to acquire Codemasters?"

Christensen said: "It looks like it should be true."

"Significant?" Zhou Buqi frowned, "Codemasters is just a traditional game manufacturer."

Although Christensen has not been in the game industry for a long time from the investment industry, he worked under Mattrick and adapted quickly. "EA should adjust its strategic thinking."

Zhou Buqi asked: "How to adjust?"

Christensen said: "In the past three years, affected by the general environment of the game industry, EA's stock price has not been very good. They have been looking for opportunities for transformation and have identified the direction of social games. They have acquired four Social game studios, such as the acquisition of Playfish for $09 million in 2.75, and the acquisition of Friends Studio for $18.5 billion last year. Especially the social game company KlickNation, the most ridiculous.”

Zhou Buqi didn't pay much attention, and didn't know very well, "What's the matter?"

"EA's acquisition of KlickNation was officially negotiated and officially announced on December 12 last year. At that time, EA's stock price was still rising. But not long after, Zynga went public. All EA's fantasies about social games It was shattered. Fortunately, this transaction has not passed the supervision, and EA still has a chance to regret it, and it can abandon this transaction by paying liquidated damages.”

Having said that, Christensen couldn't help laughing.

I feel really bad for EA.

It’s okay to buy a friend’s studio at a high price. EA is also worried that Ziwei Star International will go back on its word, so it spends money to operate, and quickly let this transaction pass the regulatory review, and let this transaction be finalized.

This is not counting.

In order to transform and save the stock price, EA's board of directors acted like a demon.After the acquisition of Friends Studio, it also launched an acquisition of KlickNation, the sixth-ranked social game manufacturer in China.

And finalized the agreement in December last year.

Then, Zynga went public.

Then, the social game industry was implicated by Zynga, and there were signs of collapse as a whole.

EA was completely dumbfounded.

The board of directors needs to be restructured, and even the CEO may be fired.

Fortunately, there is still a chance to save.

The acquisition of KlickNation has not been approved by the regulator, which means that the deal has not been formally concluded, and the contract can be broken by paying liquidated damages.

Zhou Buqi basically understood, "That is to say, EA gave up the acquisition of KlickNation and paid a liquidated damages. Then the acquisition fee was used to acquire Codemasters."

Christensen nodded slightly, "Well, it should be so."

Zhou Buqi said indifferently: "Even if this is the case, it is obvious that EA deliberately targeted it."

If EA wants to save the stock price, it must transform.

How to turn?
If the transition to social games is unsuccessful, then turn to mobile games next. This is the right way.

What does it mean to abandon KlickNation and acquire Codemasters instead?
The reason why EA's stock price has been depressed for a long time is because the market is not optimistic about the development prospects of such traditional game manufacturers, and new tracks and new growth points are needed to gain market recognition.

However, Codemasters is also a traditional game manufacturer.

EA's acquisition of Codemasters is the acquisition of traditional game manufacturers by traditional game manufacturers. Isn't this worse?There is no such logic at all.

It is very likely that EA's existing board of directors or CEO will retaliate for the last time before stepping down.

Christensen sighed, "What should we do now? EA's quotation is much higher than ours. Because of such an accident, Changyou's hard work in the past two years was in vain. Changyou managed to lower the acquisition price of Codemasters to 2 [-] million pounds, but when EA appeared, it was like flipping the table.”

Zhou Buqi asked, "Is Codemasters a listed company?"

"Yes, the current market value is 1.55 million pounds. We quoted 1.85 million pounds, which is already a very good premium. But EA quoted 2.7 million pounds, and the premium was as high as 75%."

Christensen is very reluctant to follow EA's thinking about Changyou, but this wave of EA's operations is really disgusting and obvious.The premium is so much at one time, and no one will believe it if it is not deliberately targeted.

Zhou Buqi asked: "If it is the same offer, who is Codemasters more inclined to?"

Christensen was very confident, and said with a smile: "Of course it will be Changyou. In fact, the quotations of both parties do not need to be the same. As long as the difference is not too large, they will still choose Changyou. Changyou represents tomorrow, and EA represents the past. This is the consensus of the industry."

Another point is that she is a British citizen who has previously engaged in the investment field and has dealt with several important shareholders of Codemasters.

Not only is there a relationship of interest, but there is also a human relationship.

Unless EA's offer is too high, it is so high that Codemasters can't refuse.Otherwise, EA would have no chance to compete with Changyou.

Zhou Buqi narrowed his eyes and asked, "Where is Don Mattrick? Where is he?"

"He's in Australia, working on that World of Tanks game you mentioned last time."

Christensen went on to explain further.

It is said that Changyou's global business is about to start slowly. Currently, Changyou does not have a branch in Australia, so the CEO, Don Mattrick, is often in charge.

Zhou Buqi made a decision and said: "Two preparations. First, notify Codemasters first, so that they don't rush to accept EA's offer, and Changyou is ready to start bidding. Second, ask Mattrick to ask EA. , Let’s see what’s going on. If EA really wants to have an arm wrestle with Changyou, then Changyou will not be polite!”

Prior to this, Zhou Buqi didn't even think about targeting EA.

What he is pursuing now is to make money with harmony.

However, if EA really dares to come head-to-head... hum!Boss Zhou doesn't mind getting off the field, he will fight with EA!
But if you really want to fight, it will not be easy for EA to recover.