In the last two years, gamers have played more than 2 billion hours of Minecraft on Microsoft's Xbox 360. Monday,
"Gaming is a top activity spanning devices, from PCs and consoles to tablets and mobile, with billions of hours spent each year," said Nadella. "Minecraft is more than a great game franchise – it is an open world platform, driven by a vibrant community we care deeply about, and rich with new opportunities for that community and for Microsoft."
Microsoft shares gained 0.2% when rumors of a deal surfaced last Wednesday and were down about 0.8% to $46.35 in morning trading Monday. The deal, while practically small compared to $7.2 billion Microsoft spent on Nokia's device business, may have confused some investors who expected Nadella to focus on Microsoft's enterprise businesses rather than its consumer facing ones.
When Nadella took over as CEO, for example, Kim Forrest, senior equity analyst at Fort Pitt Capital Group and a former software engineer, pointed out that most of Microsoft’s money comes from enterprise sales, with consumers as a bonus. Back then Forrest told me that Nadella’s background going after big markets impressed her and may signal a more self-aware enterprise focus from Microsoft.
The Mojang team will join Microsoft Studios, maker of popular video games Halo, Forza and Fable, among others. Microsoft expects the deal to close in late 2014 and to break even on the acquisition in fiscal 2015.
Last week, FORBES contributor Erik Kain pointed out,
Traditionally Mojang has maintained a decidedly indie spirit, not collecting data on its users and encouraging employees to interact with fans online. Microsoft has a much more controlled PR presence and operates like most other giant tech firms in terms of data collection and so forth. It would certainly be a test of culture clash to mix the two."
In an apparent effort to stave off "clash" concerns from the enormous Minecraft community (it has been downloaded more than 100 million times on PCs alone since 2009) Mojang CEO Carl Manneh said in the Microsoft statement on the deal, "The 'Minecraft' players have taken the game and turned it into something that surpassed all of our expectations. The acquisition by Microsoft brings a new chapter to the incredible story of 'Minecraft.' As the founders move on to start new projects, we believe the high level of creativity from the community will continue the game's success far into the future."
In a note to fans on its own website Mojang wrote, "Yes, the deal is real. Mojang is being bought by Microsoft. It was reassuring to see how many of your opinions mirrored those of the Mojangstas when we heard the news. Change is scary, and this is a big change for all of us. It’s going to be good though. Everything is going to be OK. <3"
As FORBES' Max Jedeur-Palmgren and Ryan Mac reported last week the deal will make founder Markus “Notch” Persson the world's newest billionaire, as well as one of its youngest. Check out their story for more. The Mojang note confirmed Notch and his two co founders will not be staying on at Microsoft. "We don’t know what they’re planning," read the note. "It won’t be Minecraft-related but it will probably be cool."
--
