Activision subsidiary ABS Partners is buying King Digital for $5.9 billion

Just recently, it was announced Activision subsidiary ABS Partners is buying King Digital, makers of Candy Crash Saga, Farm Heroes Saga and other match-3 titles, for $5.9 billion.

If the purchase gets approved by the Irish High Court, King would form part of the successful Activision family (which includes such franchises as StarCraft, Warcraft, Call of Duty, Guitar Hero, and others) sometime during Spring 2016.

The board of directors at King and Activision Blizzard unanimously agreed and approved the acquisition, which includes an $18 per share purchase price (a 20% premium over King’s closing price as of October 30th).

Riccardo Zacconi, King CEO, 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.”

Both King and Activision Bliizard will host a conference call tomorrow morning at 8:00 am ET.

[Source]: Activision Blizzard: Activision Blizzard to Acquire King Digital Entertainment for $5.9 Billion.