EA to buy UK game developer Codemasters for $1.2bn
Gaming giant Electronic Arts (EA) has reached a deal to buy British firm Codemasters for $1.2bn (£900m), gatecrashing US rival Take-Two Interactive’s earlier offer.
Codemasters said it has “shared ambitions to lead the video game racing category” with California-based EA.
“The board of Codemasters firmly believes the company would benefit from EA’s knowledge, resources and extensive global scale — both overall and specifically within the racing sector,” it said in a statement.
EA’s offer marks a hammer blow for a planned cash-and-stock deal agreed between Codemasters and Take-Two last month.
Take-Two, parent of the Grand Theft Auto and NBA 2K games, had agreed a deal with Codemasters in early November that initially valued the Warwickshire-based company at around £759m.
EA’s purchase of Codemasters at a valuation above $1bn ranks the global gaming giant’s largest-ever deal.
Codemasters’ shareholders will be entitled to receive 604p per share under the deal, marking a 13 per cent premium on Friday’s closing price.
Shares spiked 18 per cent to 630p in pre-trading this morning, marking a record height for the software firm.
Andrew Wilson, chief executive of EA, said the deal marked an “amazing opportunity” to bring together two giants in the video game racing field.
“Our industry is growing, the racing category is growing, and together we will be positioned to lead in a new era of racing entertainment,” he said. “We have admired Codemasters’ creative talent and high-quality games for many years.”
The deal will unite the Silicon Valley-based company’s huge portfolio of sports games, including the FIFA soccer and Madden American football franchises, with Codemasters’ racing simulators.
EA is one of the world’s largest video games companies, valued at almost $40bn.
Its acquisition of Codemasters is expected to be completed in the first quarter of calendar 2021.