According to Phil Spencer’s leaked email, Microsoft may buy Valve if the opportunity arises: So what does this mean?
Major acquisitions and consolidations in the video game industry are among the developments that have had a great impact in recent years, especially in the gaming world. The latest bombshell news was that Phil Spencer pointed out Microsoft’s potential acquisition of Valve in a 2020 email. But in this email, we also learned that the real target was Nintendo.
Microsoft’s Real Goal is to Buy Nintendo
This leaked information emerged during the legal fight between Microsoft and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) over the Activision Blizzard acquisition process. Taking large companies to court can often cause some confidential documents to accidentally come to light, and this is exactly the result of such a scenario.
This email indicates that Xbox head Phil Spencer believes that in Microsoft’s eyes, Nintendo is the most valuable game company he could buy. However, the email states that the Microsoft Board of Directors has positive opinions about both Nintendo and Valve and is fully open to the possibility of purchasing both companies.
Another leaked document shared by industry analyst Piers Harding-Rolls reveals that Microsoft estimates Valve’s value in 2021 as $6.5 billion and Nintendo’s value as $15.1 billion. Tencent is at the top of this list with $32.8 billion.
So, in this case, what will change for PC gaming if Microsoft buys Valve? Such a merger could lead to a major change in the acting world. Although Valve has approached PC gaming with its own free spirit, it is certain that Microsoft will want to increase its effectiveness. As you may remember, Valve developed SteamOS based on Linux, which criticized Microsoft’s restrictions on Windows.
Today, relations between Valve and Microsoft are calmer than before. While Microsoft continues to publish its games on the Steam platform, the “disaster” description that Valve boss Gabe Newell used for Windows 8 is left behind. However, at a time when Microsoft is aiming to acquire Activision Blizzard, it seems very difficult for the Valve acquisition to happen, considering the legal interventions and possible obstacles of the FTC.
It’s a matter of curiosity what Valve thinks about this. Gabe Newell’s statement last year that he was not too worried about consolidation moves may also affect his stance on acquisitions.
It is unknown what changes this potential merger of Microsoft and Valve will lead to in the gaming world, but thanks to these leaked emails, we can get some ideas about what players may encounter in the future.
Our news PCGamerCompiled from the article in. You can also find the leaked email there.