Sony’s plan to purchase Destiny developer Bungie is now reportedly being probed by the Federal Trade Commission. The $3.6 billion deal was announced in January and comes at a time when the FTC has taken a more aggressive stance toward big tech mergers.
According to The Information (via VGC), the FTC may not be in a position to block the deal, but it can still review it, reinforcing its stance to probe for potential antitrust issues in the gaming industry.
Consolidation in the gaming industry has increased recently, and while Microsoft’s acquisition of Zenimax and Bethesda wasn’t investigated by the FTC when it was completed in March 2021, the $70 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard is being looked into. Though the sale isn’t final yet, Activision Blizzard shareholders have approved it and the next step will involve scrutiny from the FTC and regulatory bodies in Europe and China.
Sony’s long-term plans for Bungie include making the studio an “independent subsidiary” of PlayStation that will still develop games for multiple platforms once the deal is complete.
In other acquisition news, Square Enix announced this week that it had sold its Western studios Crystal Dynamics, Eidos-Montreal, and Square Enix Montreal to Embracer Group for $300 million, allowing the gaming giant to streamline its operations and invest in future technologies. PlayStation boss Jim Ryan has also dropped hints that Sony will be looking to acquire more studios in the future.
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