Game analyst firm Digi-Capital reports that over US$12.5 billion in game company acquisitions were announced in 2013.
Mobile game company mergers led with US$4.6 billion in acquisitions, followed by MMO firms at US$4 billion, game technology companies with US$2.5 billion and US$1 billion in console game company acquisitions. Digi-Capital expects mobile growth and cannibalisation to continue to drive further mergers this year.
Digi-Capital also pointed out that regional realignment is a major driver of M&A growth. Asian companies represented nine of the top ten buyers of game companies in 2013, and the firm forecasts that by 2017 over 63 per cent of the global US$60 billion mobile and online game market will be based in Asia.
The report noted that legacy online game companies moving into mobile games is also a key M&A driver in Asia.
