There's a lot of nibbling going on in Asia's booming online gaming market.
Electronic Arts
The purchase follows Shanda Interactive's
It's certainly a buyer's market out there. Upstarts looking for cash have few places to turn. Venture capitalists and creditors are awfully stingy with their money these days. Going public is also a tricky proposition, since Giant Interactive
To be fair, Giant is also the only publicly traded online gaming company in China to have posted a decline in revenue in its latest quarter. Shanda smoked past Wall Street's profit targets on Monday. Peers like NetEase.com
Of course, there's a disconnect here. The stocks are getting hammered, even as their fundamentals have never been better. This opens the door for opportunistic buyers looking to expand in the promising Asian market, at a time when their stateside prospects are iffy. EA already has a minority stake in China's The9
In other words, this game is only just beginning.
Other playful diversions for your eyes:
- Shanda posted a great quarter this week.
- EA's CFO discusses future demand.
- Activision Blizzard has been cutting deals.
- What are you waiting for? Here is your shot to score big.