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Microsoft Reveals $2.5 Billion Acquisition of Mojang

By - Source: Reuters | B 23 comments

ORIGINAL STORY: Minecraft Pocket Edition has become one of the biggest games on Android and iOS, taking the top paid spots on each platform. What you don’t see is Minecraft Pocket Edition on Windows Phone. Perhaps this is one of the reasons why Microsoft has set its sights on Minecraft developer Mojang: to provide the resources in getting Minecraft PE to the Windows Phone platform.

According to an unnamed source, Microsoft plans to reveal its $2.5 billion deal to purchase Mojang on Monday. Dave Bisceglia, Chief Executive of independent game studio Tap Lab, believes the acquisition would mean that Microsoft could push to provide something unique to the Minecraft PE players that will drive Windows Phone sales.

“It seems like Microsoft is looking at Mojang and Minecraft as a way to tap into this enormous cultural phenomenon," he told Reuters.

Minecraft creator and Mojang co-founder Markus Persson currently doesn’t have any plans to bring the game to Windows Phone because of the platform’s small piece of the mobile pie (2.5 percent); he commented that BlackBerry and Symbian users have more users than Windows Phone. There’s speculation that he will leave Mojang if the company decides to accept Microsoft’s buyout offer.

Meanwhile, Minecraft fans are striking out at Persson and Mojang regarding the unannounced deal. “You gave us your word you wouldn't sell out to big name companies. Please, Notch, don't let us Minecrafters down,” one fan said via Twitter.

A report by the Huffington Post states that fans are worried about handing the Minecraft reins over to Microsoft. They fear that the block-building game will become a Microsoft exclusive, which honestly would be rather silly. If anything, the company would throw in exclusive features that could only be acquired through the Xbox consoles and Windows Phone.

Players are also worried that Microsoft may eliminate modding with Minecraft, and that future upgrades to the game would be “less compelling” and “less user-friendly” because Mojang didn’t create the upgrades on its own. However, if the Microsoft/Mojang deal goes gold, there’s a good chance Microsoft may leave the game alone. Why fix a game that’s not broken?

If anything, a Mojang buyout means that the studio has the resources to stay on the Minecraft tracks. This stash of cash may also lead to the release of Minecraft PE on Windows Phone and Windows 8.1. Of course, this is all mere rumor and speculation until Monday if sources are correct and the two parties announce the deal.

UPDATE: As expected, Microsoft revealed its acquisition of Mojang for $2.5 billion. The deal is expected to close before the end of 2014. "Microsoft plans to continue to make Minecraft available across all the platforms on which it is available today: PC, iOS, Android, Xbox and PlayStation," the press release said.

Follow Kevin Parrish @exfileme. Follow us @tomshardware, on Facebook and on Google+.

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  • 0 Hide
    junkeymonkey , September 15, 2014 6:58 AM
    ''Minecraft fans are striking out at Persson and Mojang regarding the unannounced deal. “You gave us your word you wouldn't sell out to big name companies''


    money talks and there good word walks
  • 8 Hide
    InvalidError , September 15, 2014 7:14 AM
    2.5G$ would be difficult to turn down. I have a hard time imagining how such a simple game could be worth anywhere near that much.
  • 3 Hide
    bourgeoisdude , September 15, 2014 7:19 AM
    I'm usually the one who sticks up for Microsoft, but I'm not sure how anyone this planet outside of those receiving a piece of the $2.5 billion pie believes this is a good idea, for Microsoft or consumers (ultimately even for Mojang). Even if there is some super-secret project underway that will be MS exclusive, some Project Spark integration, or other such things--no I still can't figure out what is going on.
  • Add your comment Display all 23 comments.
  • -1 Hide
    junkeymonkey , September 15, 2014 7:24 AM
    dont you want java boggong your windows down??
  • -2 Hide
    Goldengoose , September 15, 2014 7:27 AM
    Hypocrites
  • 5 Hide
    someguynamedmatt , September 15, 2014 7:28 AM
    ...as much as a lot of people don't want their favorite game to be bought out by another company, we're talking about a LOT of money here. I'd rather have it be Microsoft than a lot of other people, and you can't tell me you'd turn down two and a half billion dollars if it was offered to you for a game which you'd put probably six years or so into - that's almost a $420M annual income.
  • 4 Hide
    Afrospinach , September 15, 2014 7:39 AM
    I am ambivalent. On the one hand I kind of think Mojang's relevance is done and dusted for the most part, on the other I can't really see how MS is going to do anything productive with MC.

    If I were them I would just take the money.
  • 1 Hide
    FrodoSwaggins , September 15, 2014 7:52 AM
    2.5 billion for a one hit wonder? Notch was really lucky with Minecraft, and the game itself was a copy of an already existing game. Not to mention that it was poorly optimized, and he just gave up and never bothered trying to fix it after making monumental amounts of cash.
  • 3 Hide
    spartanmk2 , September 15, 2014 8:15 AM
    Lets hope Gabe Newell sticks to his word...
  • 0 Hide
    ezorb , September 15, 2014 8:33 AM
    How about a windows native client with hardware rendering and crazy long view distances so i can uninstall the java cancer from my computer
  • 1 Hide
    Urzu1000 , September 15, 2014 8:46 AM
    @FrodoSwaggins , the optimization has greatly improved as of the last update.

    Also, I feel that Mojang made a good game. I feel that a lot of these comments are people acting like Mojang owes them something. Yeah, they're an indie company. We all love indie games. And yes, they did make an awesome game. And yes, we do for the most part, hate giant mega-corporations like Microsoft.

    But come on. They don't owe you anything. They gave you a great game for a fair price. If they want to live the rest of their lives without financial worry, who are any of us to say they can't?

    And you know what? Be optimistic. Thankfully it isn't EA offering to buy them.
  • 2 Hide
    COLGeek , September 15, 2014 9:36 AM
    Seems like such an odd acquisition of truly limited, long term value. Time shall tell.
  • 2 Hide
    junkeymonkey , September 15, 2014 9:57 AM
    makes me wonder how much a real computer program is worh to them now

  • -1 Hide
    wmalinowski , September 15, 2014 10:07 AM
    After see what happen to Rare after microsoft bought, I'm not optimistic at all about this deal. It is PC owners that will screwed in the deal.....
  • 0 Hide
    ethanolson , September 15, 2014 11:03 AM
    What WP has going for it:
    -Lumia phone design is very nice and sturdy
    -Lumia cameras are excellent... especially my 1020
    -Battery life is amazingly good
    -HERE Maps offline maps are very useful
    -Driving Mode is slick and automatic
    -Cortana... might be better than Siri or Google Now, but I haven't found that to be the case yet.
    -Custom ringtones are super easy

    What Android has going for it:
    -Microsoft's OneNote is better on Android than on WP
    -Microsoft's Remote Desktop app exists on Android (not on WP) and works really well
    -Pretty much everything else is better on Android... including the fact that Microsoft has more apps for Android.

    What iOS has going for it:
    -Security is much better than on Android
    -The user interface is happier than WP or even many Android implementations
    -The most touch-usable version of MS Office ever is available on the iPad
    -The most apps of any platform that people actually like and want

    Conclusion is that Microsoft should probably work on implementing what's good on WP into Android and iOS and even sell some slick and durable Lumia phones running Android all Microsofted up but not all tiled up. Android needs live icons not live tiles.
  • 2 Hide
    dstarr3 , September 15, 2014 1:51 PM
    If I had a hobby of making little indie games, and one day someone offered me $2.5 billion for one, I would be a colossal idiot to turn it down.

    $1m can support a small family comfortably for about six years. Which is to say that $2.5b can comfortably support a family for 15,000 years.

    WHY WOULD YOU TURN THAT DOWN.
  • 1 Hide
    InvalidError , September 15, 2014 2:36 PM
    Quote:
    $1m can support a small family comfortably for about six years. Which is to say that $2.5b can comfortably support a family for 15,000 years.

    Don't forget the tax-man's share.

    If I received 2.5G$, I would try my best to bury most of it in tax-deductible investments and expenses to avoid paying a ridiculous amount of taxes in the first year.
  • 3 Hide
    junkeymonkey , September 15, 2014 2:37 PM
    best investment i ever made was in a mattress
  • 0 Hide
    bluestar2k11 , September 15, 2014 7:00 PM
    "$1m can support a small family comfortably for about six years."

    Only 6 years? Seriously??
    I figure 1m$ would support a family of 4 for about 15 years if you figure buying a house, a car or two, and furnishing said house, and upgrading to modern technology, before figuring a yearly income, which is around 42k/yr, not counting any additional income from a job.

    But why would i turn down 2.5B$?
    Because i have absolutely zero faith that the purchasing company would do anything but destroy the brand i created, I'd rather take my income from selling said brand and keep ahold of the title I saw grow to a hit in the industry, and put extra into making a sequel that would do even better and be more of what the fans seek, and make all of that all over again.
  • 0 Hide
    cats_Paw , September 15, 2014 10:26 PM
    I wonder how much they could do if they invested half a billion in developing something good.
    Unfortunatelly big companies are unable to make good changes by their own... all we get is Windows 8.
    Another company that will bite the dust eventually.
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