Sony, not unlike Microsoft, has been on its own spending spree, having made a number of significant studio acquisitions throughout last year, and that’s something the company has very much continued in the early months of 2022, having announced the acquisitions of Bungie and Haven Studios. PlayStation CEO Jim Ryan has insisted that there are still more acquisitions planned, but what other developers or companies could Sony be targeting?
Industry analyst Michael Pachter tackled the question on a recent episode of his SIFTD Games show Pachter Factor, and according to him, Sony should make Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment an acquisition target- with a caveat. As per Pachter, if deals involving acquisitions of WB Games studios were to involve licenses for Warner Bros. and DC properties, that would be the only scenario where the prices that those deals would involve would be justified- which is something he has previously expressed as well.
“I think if Sony were really smart, they’d make a move for Warner Bros. Interactive,” Pachter said. “But Warner Bros. Interactive isn’t worth full price without the rights to exploit the DC Comics franchises. So it’s an open question whether Warner Bros. is willing to fix the license that is paid for those properties to, you know, $5 million a year, $50 million a year, some number that’s manageable, and commit that they will have a perpetual renewal.”
“If you can’t make Warner Bros. properties like Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter and DC Comics, then it doesn’t really make sense to buy Warner Bros. Interactive,” he continued. “There are brands there that are really good. You know, like Mortal Kombat and Injustice, but Injustice has DC characters. But they’re about the only ones I can think of out there that are sizeable and nominally are for sale.”
Interestingly, reports of Warner Bros. looking to sell off its studios have recently resurfaced yet again, just as they first did back in 2020 (and then again last year), and Sony has been mentioned as one of several companies that’s interested in making some purchases there- again, just as it was back in 2020.
Whether or not something actually comes of that remains to be seen, but that Sony will be picking up more studios in the coming months seems pretty much like a given at this point.
