Activision Blizzard have announced their pending acquisition of King Digital Entertainment, the company behind mobile hit Candy Crush Saga, for a deal worth $5.9 billion.
Activision Blizzard have bolstered its already impressive portfolio, as the company acquires two of the top five grossing mobile games in Candy Crush Saga and its sequel Candy Crush Soda Saga.
The acquisition of King Digital Entertainment will make Activision Blizzard "one of the largest global entertainment networks with over half a billion combined monthly active users in 196 countries".
Activision Blizzard now own some of the largest titles across the gaming industry, as Candy Crush joins the monumental line-up of Call of Duty, World of Warcraft, StarCraft, Destiny, Hearthstone and more.
Bobby Kotick, CEO of Activision Blizzard, stated that Activision Blizzard were keen to broaden its current reach and demographic, which they have seemingly achieved via the acquisition of King Digital Entertainment and its user base, 60% of which are reportedly female.
In addition to this, Activision Blizzard have entered one of the fastest and most promising industries, noting in their announcement that the mobile gaming industry is expected to generate more than $36 billion by 2016 and grow cumulatively by over 50% from 2015 to 2019.
Activision Blizzard have stated the acquisition is subject to approval by King's shareholders and the Irish government, but is expected to be completed by spring 2016.
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