a possible deal between EA and NBCUniversal may have been among the gaming giant’s most fruitful merger talks, with Comcast CEO Brian Roberts proposing “to spin off NBCUniversal and merge the media and gaming giants.” The Puck report says an EA and NBC deal would have put EA CEO Andrew Wilson in charge of the newly merged entity. However, talks between the companies “ultimately fell apart within the last month due to disagreements over price and structure.”
While the NBCUniversal negotiations didn’t pan out, EA remains “persistent” in other options, with its urgency spurred by Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision-Blizzard. EA’s terms for a deal prioritize Wilson remaining CEO, and the chief executive allegedly approached Disney last March. Puck’s sources described those talks as more than licensing agreements but did not speak to their exact nature.