“At some point, getting Nintendo would be a career moment” – Leaked Microsoft email from Xbox chief, Phil Spencer, discussing Nintendo as a potential acquisition target and Warner Bros. Games.
“Takesji, I totally agree that Nintendo is THE prime asset for us in Gaming and today Gaming is our most likely path to consumer relevance,” the email begins.
“I’ve had numerous conversations with the LT of Nintendo about tighter collaboration and feel like if any US company would have a chance with Nintendo we are probably in the best position. The unfortunate (or fortunate for Nintendo) situation is that Nintendo is sitting on a big pile of cash, they have a [board of directors] that until recently has not pushed for further increases in market growth or stock appreciation.
“I say “until recently” as our former MS BoD member ValueAct has been heavily acquiring shares of Nintendo and I’ve kept in touch with [ValueAct CEO] Mason Morfit as he’s been acquiring. It’s likely he will be pushing for more from Nintendo stock which could create opportunities for us.
If you thought that taking over the Call of Duty developer was a big deal, then buckle up: In 2020, Xbox chief Phil Spencer presented Microsoft leadership with plans to buy Nintendo and Valve: “(…) our BoD [board of directors, editor’s note] has seen the full writeup on Nintendo (and Valve) and they fully supportive on either if opportunity arises as am I.”
Yep, he just threw Valve and its multi-billion-dollar Steam platform in there too. The idea of Microsoft buying Valve has been much-bandied-about and rumour-mongered over the years. Gabe Newell brushed the idea off when RPS spoke to him about it back in 2007.
The email also makes reference to a few other potential Microsoft acquisitions, one of which would come to fruition a few months later. “Confidentially we have two fairly active M&A discussions in Gaming right now, Warner Bros Interactive and ZeniMax,” Spencer adds.
While the plans for Valve are not mentioned in this email, which was released as an attachment to an unsealed court document, in any detail, Spencer did provide some insight on how Microsoft was planning to force Nintendo into a merger: “The unfortunate (or fortunate for Nintendo) situation is that Nintendo is sitting on a big pile of cash, they have a BoD that until recently has not pushed for further increase in market growth or stock appreciation,” he reported to his colleagues Chris Capossela and Takeshi Numoto. “I say ‘until recently’ as our former MS BoD member ValueAct has been heavily acquiring shares of Nintendo (…) and I’ve kept in touch with Mason Morfit [ValueAct’s CEO, editor’s note] as he’s been acquiring. It’s likely he will be pushing for more Nintendo stock which could create opportunities for us.”
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