Electronic Arts are moving closer to a $1.2 billion takeover of Codemasters, developer of the Formula 1 video games.
Codemasters, who have developed the Formula 1 video games since 2009, arranged a deal with Electronic Arts in December following previous rumours of a buyout from Take Two, owner of the 2K Sports franchise.
And on Wednesday, as reported by Autosport, Codemasters shareholders gave the approval for the deal with Electronic Arts to go ahead.
The next court meeting is now set to take place on February 16, with the suspension of dealings in Codemasters shares reportedly then set to follow two days after that.
Autosport state that the “deal is then set to be completed by the end of Q1, with EA subsidiary Codex Games Limited becoming the owner of Codemasters”.
Electronic Arts boast some of the biggest video game franchises in the industry, including FIFA, Madden NFL and Need for Speed.
The report claims that the latest installment in the Formula 1 game series, F1 2021, is still on target to be released in the summer.
“We believe there is a deeply compelling opportunity in bringing together Codemasters and Electronic Arts to create amazing and innovative new racing games for fans,” said Andrew Wilson, CEO of Electronic Arts, as quoted by Autosport.
“Our industry is growing, the racing category is growing, and together we will be positioned to lead in a new era of racing entertainment.”
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In a previous interview with The Race, Codemasters chairman Gerhard Florin said: “Electronic Arts and Codemasters have a shared ambition to lead the video game racing category.
“The board of Codemasters firmly believes the company would benefit from EA’s knowledge, resources and extensive global scale – both overall and specifically within the racing sector.
“We feel this union would provide an exciting and prosperous future for Codemasters, allowing our teams to create, launch and service bigger and better games to an extremely passionate audience.”
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