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Reports: EA set to be sold to private investors for up to $50B

arstechnica.com

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Re: Reports: EA set to be sold to private investors for up to $50B

#11

Post by modeless »

willio58 wrote: post #4

Can someone explain to me how a public company can go private and there’s no fear of outcry from the shareholders in said company? Like companies do all these evil things to please shareholders but wouldn’t many shareholders of a public company be against the transition back to private?

They generally pay a premium to the stock price before the transaction is announced, which means shareholders get more than the market value of their investment, which they can immediately roll into other investments. Usually people don't mind getting paid extra.

Re: Reports: EA set to be sold to private investors for up to $50B

#12

Post by notatoad »

willio58 wrote: post #4

Can someone explain to me how a public company can go private and there’s no fear of outcry from the shareholders in said company? Like companies do all these evil things to please shareholders but wouldn’t many shareholders of a public company be against the transition back to private?

the shareholders have to vote to accept the deal. if they don't like the deal, they can vote against it.

and then once the deal closes, they aren't shareholders anymore so the company's new owners don't have to care what they think.

Re: Reports: EA set to be sold to private investors for up to $50B

#13

Post by mrandish »

willio58 wrote: post #4

Can someone explain to me how a public company can go private and there’s no fear of outcry from the shareholders in said company? Like companies do all these evil things to please shareholders but wouldn’t many shareholders of a public company be against the transition back to private?

> outcry from the shareholders

If you're a shareholder, you can vote "no" to selling with your shares. Generally, selling a public company requires the majority of the shares to vote "yes" in order to force the minority shareholders to go along with the sale. Usually the share price being offered represents a substantial uplift over the current trading price of the shares (and thus the value of the company). If the transaction unfairly hurts the financial value for minority shareholders they can sue to block the transaction (which does happen).

Re: Reports: EA set to be sold to private investors for up to $50B

#16

Post by dralley »

zoklet-enjoyer wrote: post #5
gdiamos wrote: post #3

Some EA IP I remember Battlefield Mass effect Dragon age Madden The sims Titanfall

Titanfall 2 was fun. I don't get why they cancelled the third one.

The second one didn't sell well as a result of being scheduled for release on top of a Call of Duty and a Battlefield.

Reportedly it was an effort to suppress Call of Duty sales but en effect basically sacrificed Titanfall. Respawn management were very, very unhappy about this.

It's a shame, it was a great game with a fantastic campaign. I have a few hundred hours in the multiplayer too.

Re: Reports: EA set to be sold to private investors for up to $50B

#17

Post by Vaslo »

willio58 wrote: post #4

Can someone explain to me how a public company can go private and there’s no fear of outcry from the shareholders in said company? Like companies do all these evil things to please shareholders but wouldn’t many shareholders of a public company be against the transition back to private?

Immediate 20-30% jump in stock price if shareholders approve and can reinvest anywhere else. With a huge one day gain. In some cases, preferred shareholders get even sweeter deals.

If you’re an executive or board member with a tons of shares you make millions and can retire immediately (or at least after the transition you agree to is complete.)

Re: Reports: EA set to be sold to private investors for up to $50B

#18

Post by mathattack »

willio58 wrote: post #4

Can someone explain to me how a public company can go private and there’s no fear of outcry from the shareholders in said company? Like companies do all these evil things to please shareholders but wouldn’t many shareholders of a public company be against the transition back to private?

If they don’t like it they can vote it down or make a higher bid. This is why almost all buyouts come with a premium. If they choose as a group not to sell then the deal doesn’t get done. They elect a board to get the best deal for them.

Re: Reports: EA set to be sold to private investors for up to $50B

#19

Post by yeasku »

yen223 wrote: post #15
gdiamos wrote: post #3

Some EA IP I remember Battlefield Mass effect Dragon age Madden The sims Titanfall

Real ones remember C&C, Red Alert and Generals (RIP Westwood Studios)

I tried to play c&c few months back, I think EA gave it for free?

It has not aged well. But at the time was amazing.

Re: Reports: EA set to be sold to private investors for up to $50B

#20

Post by bombcar »

yen223 wrote: post #15
gdiamos wrote: post #3

Some EA IP I remember Battlefield Mass effect Dragon age Madden The sims Titanfall

Real ones remember C&C, Red Alert and Generals (RIP Westwood Studios)

RIP for the days of each new version of a game having significant advances and not just a reskin/rehash/new story version of the same thing on nearly the same engine.

Thinking Commander Keen → Wolfenstein 3D → Doom → Quake kind of things.

(Sure there were always expansion packs or similar, but often done by other studios and more of a primitive DLC (Doom II, etc). But Warcraft → Warcraft 2 → Starcraft → Warcraft III was way more of a jump than the various Halos, say.)

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