Microsoft Pays $2.5bn For Minecraft Maker Mojang
Microsoft pays $2.5bn for Minecraft maker Mojang By Joe Miller Technology reporter, BBC News
Microsoft has bought Mojang, the Swedish firm behind the popular video game Minecraft, for $2.5bn (PS1.5bn).
The title has sold over 54,000,000 copies. Players can build structures using retro Lego-style bricks, explore large maps, and battle other players.
Phil Spencer, Xbox chief, announced the deal.
Mojang's three founders will depart the company. Games However, Mojang assured fans that "everything would be OK".
Analysts speculate that the deal is meant to increase Microsoft's Windows Phone users.
The acquisition comes one year after Microsoft bought the Finnish mobile phone manufacturer Nokia's handsets division.
Minecraft is one of the top-selling apps on both Apple's iOS store and and Android's Google Play, and has recently been released for the Xbox One and PlayStation 4, further boosting sales.
Last month, it was the third most popular console game, according to market research firm NPD Group, despite being on sale for a while.
Mojang is the game's creator. It was founded in 2009 and made more than $100 million in profit last year. Mojang employs approximately 40 people.
Microsoft announced that the Mojang team would be joining its game studio, which is responsible titles like Halo, Forza, and Fable.
Satya Nadella is the chief executive of the tech giant. She stated that "Minecraft" is more than just a great game series. It is also an open-world platform driven by a vibrant community that we care deeply about and rich with new opportunities both for Microsoft and that community.
Opposition to sale
Mojang's founder, Markus "Notch" Persson, has previously criticised Microsoft, and commented to Reuters that the market for Windows phones was "tiny" and not worth developing apps for.
Minecraft has a large and enthusiastic cult following, many of whom have reacted angrily to what they see as a corporate takeover of a communally-spirited independent company.
"Makes me sick, and sad," wrote one user on a popular Minecraft forum. "It would kill the gaming community," EvilBatsu added.
Others expressed concern about whether their skills would be displayed by fans.
"It will not only cost more to play the game, but it will also cost people their jobs." Many people play Minecraft and upload it on YouTube as their career. However, if Microsoft becomes the dominant company, there will undoubtedly be copyright issues.
Some gamers suggested that Microsoft could spend more resources on the game's expansion and upgrades.
Microsoft released a statement saying that it would maintain Minecraft across all platforms and make a commitment to "tender and grow it long-term".
It said that the acquisition was expected close by the end of 2014.
In an announcement confirming the deal on its website, Mojang reassured gamers, saying: "Please remember that the future of Minecraft and you - the community - are extremely important to everyone involved. Let's take one thing from this post.
Mojang expressed concern about Microsoft, saying: "There are only few potential buyers with enough resources to grow Minecraft to the scale it deserves."
The firm said that "Notch", who was not interested in the responsibility of managing a company of such international significance, had made the decision to leave.
Developer Notch on selling Minecraft:
"I've become an icon. I don't want to be a symbol, responsible for something huge that I don't understand, that I don't want to work on, that keeps coming back to me. I'm not an entrepreneur. I'm not an entrepreneur.
Read his statement in full
Why Minecraft?
James McQuivey from analytics firm Forrester noted that "Minecraft was one of the most important gaming property in the world."
"Not only is it profitable, but it continues to increase in profits years after its release, largely due to the passionate fan base that invests in building out their own Minecraft worlds.
"This helps to explain why Microsoft would want Minecraft, and would want it to be available on all of Microsoft's gaming platforms.
Prof Mark Skilton of Warwick Business School stated that the acquisition was meant to create a strong customer base for Microsoft.
"The online gaming industry is moving quickly from niche collective enthusiast into mass market and Minecraft seems like a logical move, as big business follows the traffic figures in the digital world."
Amazon purchased Twitch last month, a site that allows users to view other people playing video games, for $970m.
"It's about me sanity."
Microsoft is'set for Minecraft'
Microsoft completes Nokia phone deal
25 April 2014.
Microsoft
NPD Group