Apple Rumored to Be Considering EA Purchase

Recently, there has been a proliferation of rumors about possible Apple acquisitions. First, Apple was rumored to be eyeing hot microblogging service Twitter. Once that rumor was effectively squelched by Twitter Co-founder Biz Stone, another round of Apple rumors hit. This time, it’s EA that the company is purportedly considering. The rumors alone were enough to send shares of EA—the second-largest game publisher in the world—up 1.63% on May 5.

However, Apple rumors are disproved as often as they are proved true, and an EA acquisition may be only fodder for gossip rather than a story with real legs. Says Plugged In’s Mike Smith, “Apple has indeed been bolstering its games know-how, hiring a major Xbox strategist away from Microsoft in recent weeks. And EA is no stranger to Apple platforms: in the last year it’s brought several of its major franchises to the iPhone, including Sim City, Tiger Woods, and Spore, with considerable success. But it’s a far cry from there to a takeover, and that’s putting it mildly.”

Further dismantling this rumor, Smith adds, “Specialist video games analyst Michael Pachter seems to agree. Speaking to Gamasutra, he pointed out that if Apple was looking to make some entertainment acquisitions, it could buy Warner Music—which controls 20% of the music industry—for roughly half of EA’s estimated price.”

Apple has also been rumored to be considering dropping prices on its iMac and MacBook lines as a way to bolster sales. As always, time will tell whether Apple, who is still awaiting the return of CEO Steve Jobs (scheduled for June), is truly on the move.