If Facebook thought it was going to walk away as the Big Tech metaverse leader, it might want to check in on Microsoft first.
Jan. 19, 2022
By now, you’ll have likely heard of Microsoft’s (NASDAQ: MSFT) lofty, $70 billion plans to acquire AAA game developer Activision Blizzard (NASDAQ: ATVI).
But we’re not here to talk about Activision’s recent controversy, Microsoft’s mobile gaming push, or the more obvious stuff…
I can hear the eyes rolling out the back of your head as each of you wonderful readers groan:
“Who put the quarter in this guy? He’s spouting about the metaverse again!”
Well, you better get used to it folks because like coronavirus, 5G, Web3, and all the other buzzwords, it’s gonna’ be here for a while.
And Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella is not being subtle about it either:
“Gaming is the most dynamic and exciting category in entertainment across all platforms today and will play a key role in the development of metaverse platforms. We’re investing deeply in world-class content, community and the cloud to usher in a new era of gaming that puts players and creators first and makes gaming safe, inclusive and accessible to all.”
Sure, mobile gaming is getting all the laudits in Microsoft’s press release — as you’ll see in the chart below — but the metaverse is where all the gold miners are digging. Nadella sees an opportunity for many software makers to create various virtual worlds in the future, instead of one dominant company controlling most of the activity. And with the metaverse’s virtual worlds currently dominated by gaming, by buying one of the biggest game developers around — which boasts ‘Call of Duty’, ‘Candy Crush’, and ‘World of Warcraft’, to name a few — Microsoft has landed itself a very big shovel.
So forget the hefty price tag and listen up; Microsoft’s in good hands under Nadella, who has clearly spotted an opportunity to become one of the dominant players in metaverse gaming, and I for one couldn’t be more excited.