Before Warner Bros. Netflix was reportedly interested in buying EA

Late last week it was officially announced that Netflix had entered into a deal with Warner Bros. Discovery to purchase their Streaming and Studios Group for a massive $82 Billion. It seems WB’s gaming division was a big aspect of what drew them to the company, as Netflix was reportedly previously interested in acquiring EA.

In a report by Bloomberg (paywalled), prior to their proposed acquisition of Warner Bros. “Netflix executives previously debated whether the streamer should place bids for EA, Fox, and Disney,” though they ultimately “couldn't agree on a deal and feared that its interest in those companies would hurt its standing with investors.”

While the notion of Netflix purchasing any of those companies comes with major implications, the purchase of EA in particular would have been the most curious.

For many years now Netflix has been trying to squeeze its way into the video games space. Starting with mobile ports of popular console games, the media giant has also taken a couple different stabs at more high-budget game development – none of which have come to fruition.

As such, purchasing WB makes a surprising amount of sense as not only will they gain access to WB’s endless list of film and TV IPs, but also their underappreciated gaming division. What this means for the future of WB Games, we will have to wait and see.

KitGuru says: Are you surprised by the WB acquisition? Would you have rather they bought EA instead? Will Netflix improve WB’s gaming division? Let us know your thoughts down below.

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