Activision Blizzard Acquires King Digital Entertainment for 5.9 Billion

Written by Brandon Hofer on November 02, 2015

News: Activision has just made a major purchase acquiring the people behind the popular “Candy Crush” games and more.

Activision has revealed that they have acquired King Digital Entertainment for the astronomical sum of 5.9 billion dollars. For those who might not be familiar with the name King Digital Entertainment, they are the company behind the mega popular “Candy Crush” mobile games and more. Activision will acquire all of the outstanding shares of King for $18.00 in cash per share, for a total equity value of $5.9 billion (the "Acquisition"). The $18.00 per share purchase price implies a 20% premium over King's 30 October 2015 closing price, a 26% premium over King's 30 October 2015 enterprise value (which excludes net cash), a 23% premium over King's one month volume weighted average price per share and a 27% premium over King's three month volume weighted average price per share. The boards of directors of both Activision Blizzard and King unanimously approved the Acquisition, which is being implemented by means of a scheme of arrangement under Irish law. The Acquisition is subject to approval by King's shareholders and the Irish High Court, clearances by the relevant antitrust authorities and other customary closing conditions, and it is currently expected that the Acquisition will be completed by Spring 2016.

The combined company will have a world-class interactive entertainment portfolio of top-performing franchises, including two of the top five highest-grossing mobile games in the U.S. (Candy Crush Saga, Candy Crush Soda Saga), one of the world's most successful console game franchise (Call of Duty), and the world's most successful personal computing franchise (World of Warcraft), as well as such well known franchises as Blizzard Entertainment's Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft, StarCraft, and Diablo and Activision Publishing's Guitar Hero, Skylanders and Destiny, along with over 1,000 game titles in its library. Activision Blizzard expects that this leading content, together with expertise across subscription, upfront purchase, free-to-play and micro-transaction business models will enhance Activision Blizzard's position as one of the world's most successful interactive entertainment companies. During the last twelve months ending September 30, 2015, Activision Blizzard had non-GAAP revenues of $4.7 billion and King had adjusted revenues of $2.1 billion. During the same period Activision Blizzard had adjusted EBITDA of $1.6B and King had adjusted EBITDA of $0.9 billion. During the last twelve months ended September 30, 2015, Activision Blizzard had GAAP revenues of $4.9 billion and King had IFRS revenues of $2.1 billion. During the same period, Activision Blizzard had GAAP net income of $1.1 billion, and King had IFRS profit of $0.6 billion.

Bobby Kotick, Chief Executive Officer of Activision Blizzard, said, "The combined revenues and profits solidify our position as the largest, most profitable standalone company in interactive entertainment. With a combined global network of more than half a billion monthly active users, our potential to reach audiences around the world on the device of their choosing enables us to deliver great games to even bigger audiences than ever before."

Kotick, added: "Riccardo, Sebastian, and Stephane are some of the best minds in the business, and we have long-admired King for consistently creating incredibly fun, deeply engaging free-to-play games that capture the imaginations of players across ages and demographics. Activision Blizzard will provide King with experience, support and investment to continue to build on their tremendous legacy and reach new potential. We share an unwavering commitment to attracting and developing the best talent in the business, and we are excited about what we will be able to accomplish together."

Riccardo Zacconi, Chief Executive Officer of King, said, "We are excited to be entering into this Acquisition with Activision Blizzard. Since 2003, we have built one of the largest player networks on mobile and Facebook, with 474 million monthly active users in the third quarter 2015, and our talented team has created some of the most successful mobile game franchises. We believe that the Acquisition will position us very well for the next phase of our company's evolution and will bring clear benefits to our players and employees. We will combine our expertise in mobile and free-to-play with Activision Blizzard's world-class brands and proven track record of building and sustaining the most successful franchises, to bring the best games in the world to millions of players worldwide. We are very much looking forward to working with Activision Blizzard. We have two teams that, together, will have an amazing footprint, innovative technology, and leadership across platforms, and unique, established IPs to delight one of the largest networks of players in the world."

Gerhard Florin, Chairman of King's board of directors, said, "The Acquisition provides a return to King shareholders through the premium that it provides to King's share price and the immediate liquidity that the Acquisition will provide to all of our shareholders upon completion. The King board of directors believes that Activision Blizzard's cash offer is attractive given the balance of future opportunities, risks and competitive forces confronting King's business."

What do you think about this acquisition? Just so you know exactly how much money this is, Disney bought the Star Wars franchise for approximately 4 billion, almost two billion less than what Activision paid for King Digital. With Call of Duty: Black Ops III coming out later this week as well, Activision is positioning themselves to ensure they have a bright future.