Electronic Arts (EA) insists it will retain “creative control” and “creative freedom” if its sale to a consortium of investors goes through.
Electronic Arts has confirmed that it is entering into an agreement to be acquired by a group of investors. at the end of September included Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF), Silver Lake and Affinity Partners. PIF is managed by Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud of Saudi Arabia, and the investment company Affinity Partners was founded by Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner.
The investment group will acquire 100% of the developer's shares, with PIF increasing its existing stake in the company and becoming the “largest sponsored private investment in history” when it closes in the next six to nine months.
IN Frequently Asked Questions Document distributed among its employees and distributed Game fileEA said its “mission, values and commitment to players and fans around the world remain unchanged” and emphasized that “EA will retain creative control and our track record of creative freedom and player-centric values will remain intact.”
“The Consortium believes in our vision, our leadership and our commitment to creating games, stories and content that reflect diverse experiences and delivering them to our global community of players,” the company said. “They invest in the creativity that defines EA.”
The company also denied financial problems, writing: “This partnership gives us the opportunity to move faster and open up new opportunities on the global stage” and that there will be no “immediate” changes to jobs, teams or daily operations.
EA also confirmed that Andrew Wilson will remain CEO and that there will be “no changes” to the executive team.
Last week the President Communications Workers of America (CWA) wrote a letter to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) calling for a comprehensive review of the recently announced buyout of Electronic Arts (EA).
