Electronic Arts to Acquire Glu Mobile

REDWOOD CITY, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: EA), a global leader in interactive entertainment, and Glu Mobile Inc. (NASDAQ: GLUU), a leading global developer and publisher of mobile games including Design Home, Covet Fashion, and MLB Tap Sports Baseball, have entered into a definitive agreement under which Electronic Arts will acquire Glu Mobile. Under the terms of the agreement, EA will acquire Glu for $2.1 billion in enterprise value. Glu stockholders will receive $12.50 in cash for each share of Glu stock, representing a 36% premium to Glu’s closing share price on February 5, 2021. Upon closing, the acquisition will be immediately accretive to Electronic Arts’ total net bookings, and is expected to grow underlying profitability beginning in its first year.

The acquisition will immediately add significant scale to Electronic Arts’ mobile games business. The combination of Electronic Arts and Glu creates a leading mobile product portfolio that includes more than 15 top live services across fast-growing genres with a combined $1.32 billion in bookings over the last twelve months. Bringing together the best-in-class mobile development teams at Glu and Electronic Arts’ mobile business, with a collective portfolio of powerful IP in sports, lifestyle, RPG, casual and other genres, and leveraging Electronic Arts’ marketing and distribution strength to generate global reach, the combined organization will build on EA’s network of 430 million players, including more than 100 million monthly active players in mobile, and expand to new audiences and demographics all over the world.

“Our acquisition of Glu combines amazing teams and deeply-engaging products to create a mobile games leader with proven expertise across many fast-growing genres,” said Andrew Wilson, CEO of Electronic Arts. “Mobile continues to grow as the biggest gaming platform in the world, and with the addition of Glu’s games and talent, we’re doubling the size of our mobile business. With a deep IP portfolio and an expanding global audience, we’ll deliver more exciting experiences for our players and drive further growth for Electronic Arts.”

“This transaction is the culmination of the tremendous work of the Glu team to deliver world-class interactive experiences for our players, while driving business momentum that has led to strong financial and operational results. It represents a terrific outcome for all of our stockholders and other key constituents,” said Nick Earl, CEO of Glu. “As part of Electronic Arts, we will continue capitalizing on the opportunities ahead in the expanding mobile gaming industry.”

The strategic rationale for the acquisition includes:

• Creating a Leading Mobile Portfolio Across Key Genres. The complementary nature of Electronic Arts and Glu’s successful products will create a portfolio that spans many of the biggest and most popular genres of mobile games, including sports, RPG, lifestyle, casual, and mid-core games. The combined organization will have a demographically diverse audience, with significant opportunities for franchise and market expansion.
• Expanding Successful, Scalable Live Services. Both Electronic Arts and Glu have proven success creating mobile live service games that deeply engage large communities over many years and deliver strong recurring revenue. The combined expertise of the two organizations unlocks potential for further success. Glu’s franchises like Design Home, Covet Fashion, and MLB Tap Sports Baseball will benefit from Electronic Arts’ global licensing and distribution capabilities to bring them to new markets and more players. Glu’s expertise in building and monetizing sports and casual mobile games, combined with Electronic Arts’ industry-leading IP in sports and beyond, will accelerate the creation of exciting new experiences for broad audiences.
• Experienced Creative Leadership & Enhanced Team Capabilities. Glu brings a talented team including more than 500 mobile game developers (and nearly 800 total employees), adding significant scale to Electronic Arts’ mobile-focused organization. Glu’s creative leaders are established and well-known to Electronic Arts, with similar focus on creating highly successful mobile games with longevity. The combination of proven mobile leadership, deeply talented teams, genre expertise, long-running franchises and IP, and technology across the two organizations will be a catalyst to delivering new experiences and further growth.
• Accelerating Growth. The combination of Electronic Arts and Glu will be a mobile growth engine. With strong, recurring revenue across a leading portfolio of live services, strength in key mobile genres, a deep roster of owned and licensed IP, access to a large-scale and growing player network, and ability to reach into new regions and markets, the acquisition will be immediately accretive to EA’s total net bookings and is expected to grow underlying profitability beginning in its first year.

An investor presentation outlining the key aspects of the planned acquisition is available on EA’s investor relations website, at ir.ea.com.

Details on the Proposed Transaction

The board of directors of each of Electronic Arts and Glu Mobile have approved the transaction and the Glu board recommends that Glu stockholders approve the transaction and adopt the merger agreement. Under the terms of the agreement, Glu stockholders will receive $12.50 in cash for each share of Glu stock, representing an equity value of $2.4 billion, and a total enterprise value of $2.1 billion including Glu’s net cash of $364 million. The transaction is anticipated to close in the quarter ending June 30, 2021, subject to approval by the Glu stockholders, the receipt of required regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.

About Electronic Arts

Electronic Arts (NASDAQ: EA) is a global leader in digital interactive entertainment. The Company develops and delivers games, content and online services for Internet-connected consoles, mobile devices and personal computers. In fiscal year 2020, EA posted GAAP net revenue of $5.5 billion. Headquartered in Redwood City, California, EA is recognized for a portfolio of critically acclaimed, high-quality brands such as EA SPORTS™ FIFA, Battlefield™, Apex Legends™, The Sims™, Madden NFL, Need for Speed™, Titanfall™ and Plants vs. Zombies™. More information about EA is available at www.ea.com/news.

EA SPORTS, Ultimate Team, Battlefield, Apex Legends, The Sims, Need for Speed, Titanfall and Plants vs. Zombies are trademarks of Electronic Arts Inc. Madden, NFL and FIFA are properties of its respective owners and used with permission.

About Glu Mobile

Glu Mobile (NASDAQ:GLUU) is a leading developer and publisher of mobile games. Founded in 2001, Glu is headquartered in San Francisco with additional locations in Foster City, Toronto and Hyderabad. With a history spanning over a decade, Glu’s culture is rooted in taking smart risks and fostering creativity to deliver world-class interactive experiences for our players. Glu’s diverse portfolio features top-grossing and award-winning original and licensed IP titles including, Covet Fashion, Deer Hunter, Design Home, Diner DASH Adventures, Disney Sorcerer’s Arena, Kim Kardashian: Hollywood and MLB Tap Sports Baseball available worldwide on various platforms including the App Store and Google Play. For more information, visit www.glu.com or follow Glu on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

Covet Fashion, Deer Hunter, Design Home, Diner DASH, Tap Sports, Glu and Glu Mobile are trademarks of Glu Mobile Inc.

Advisors

J.P. Morgan Securities LLC is serving as exclusive financial advisor to Electronic Arts and Simpson, Thacher & Bartlett LLP is serving as legal counsel to Electronic Arts. Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC, Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC and UBS Securities LLC are serving as financial advisors to Glu. Fenwick & West LLP is serving as legal counsel to Glu.