Microsoft to Acquire Gamemaker Activision

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The Facts

  • Microsoft announced that it will pay almost $69 billion to acquire Activision, maker of the some of the world's most popular video games.

  • Sexual harrassment and discrimination allegations have plagued Activision and its subsidiary Blizzard Entertainment, depressing the company's value and making it attractive to bidders.


The Spin

Pro-establishment narrative

The merger--and others like it--will be a potential bonanza for hedge funds and other firms focused on event-driven and merger-arbitrage investment strategies.

Establishment-critical narrative

This is more than twice as much money as recently pledged to fight poverty in the world's poorest countries. The rich world is investing in the well-funded entertainment industry while poor countries struggle with poverty, disease and climate change.


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