Shit you not; this is according to Wall Street rumblings and a report over on CVG. Apple is sitting pretty with mountains of cash ($51 billion) and zero debt, so according to Jobs, they’re looking at some “strategic opportunitiesâ€.
Those opportunities translate to acquisitions, and Sony and EA are not the only companies Apple has its beady eye on if Wall Street gurus are to be believed.
Amongst the other companies tipped as possible targets for Jobs and co are Facebook, Adobe, Netflix and even Disney. This all comes on the back of statements made by Jobs last week: “We strongly believe that one or more very strategic opportunities may come along, that we can take, that we’re in a unique position to take advantage of because of our strong cash positionâ€.
A buyout of Sony is likely considering the company posted a loss of $440 million during the fiscal year 2009. The Japanese company has a market value of $40 billion, which you can see is completely in Apples’s spending range at the moment.
There’s ordinarily no smoke without a fire, but the Wall Street whispers are something to take notice of. What’s also interesting is that shortly after this speculation cropped up, Sony’s share prices rose by 3% as a direct result. Something is bound to come out of all of this, and naturally we’ll update you as soon as more information drops.
Source: CVG
Original Pic: Gizmodo
Last Updated: October 26, 2010
Gavin Mannion
October 26, 2010 at 12:48
Could you image Sony hardware with Apples UI and marketing… that would be something special.
Geoffrey Tim
October 26, 2010 at 12:50
I WANT THAT!
Bobby Kotick for Dummies
October 26, 2010 at 12:50
There’s only one problem, the total combined assets of Sony is well within the $100 billion range, which would make a buyover by a smaller company (like Apple) highly unlikely. Sony would have to deflate their stocks and shed assets for Apple to buy them, or Sony’s shareholders would have to revolt. I think it’s more likely that Apple will buyout Adobe, or if Sony’s money woes are severe enough, the companies may etch out a merger deal, which would be quite something (although not necessarily in our best interest, for instance just imagine a +$900 Apple Playstation 4.. oy! Popular with hipsters everywhere). :sick:
Ugh I hate hipsters. Steve give me my shotgun!
Bobby Kotick for Dummies
October 26, 2010 at 12:52
lol, Apple Sony Ericsson Iphone!
lans
October 26, 2010 at 12:53
apple buy sony?
lol, sony love debt, apple hate debt!
how could they ever merge?
i find this difficult to accept, its kinda like a joke.
Bobby Kotick for Dummies
October 26, 2010 at 12:57
Stranger companies have merged in the past, by the way, for those interested, 5 other firms have downgraded Microsoft in the last week and its stocks have plummeted again.
Incidentally, for those with a business mind, this would be a good time to invest in some Microsoft stock.
Bobby Kotick for Dummies
October 26, 2010 at 13:00
Anyway, the same reason no one is asking why Apple isn’t buying out Microsoft is the same for Apple not being able to buy Sony. If you catch my drift. The companies are too large, now Apple buying Disney, that could happen.
Bobby Kotick for Dummies
October 26, 2010 at 13:01
It would also be incredibly expensive, and only popular amongst the most elitist of hipsters. I think I’ll pass.
Death to the hipsters and their stupid scarves and t-shirts.
AC!D
October 26, 2010 at 13:02
This would be bad for the industry guys. Great for Sony and Apple but bad for gamers like us. Can you imagine what would happen to multi platform games. The one day MS would announce exlusive content for the one while the next day Apple would shell out all their bucks to deny MS exclusive content. It would end up being a war of money. It would be even worse than it is now. These petty little exclusive battles would just get bigger and worse for gamers to the point where you almost have to buy two copies of every game for either console to enjoy a full experience.
Also how would Apple run studios like Naughty Dog, Team Ico, Sony Santa Monica? Would they give them the creative freedom to create the amaing games they are creating now or would it be a case of a big corporation getting out yearly cash cows like MS is trying to do with Halo?
easy
October 26, 2010 at 13:04
it would probably be sony’s computer division, and not the whole brand. kinda like ibm flogging off their thinkpad div to lenovo.
Bobby Kotick for Dummies
October 26, 2010 at 13:06
As I said, Sony would have to shed assets for Apple to buy them, which is highly unlikely.
Bobby Kotick for Dummies
October 26, 2010 at 13:13
I think it’s safe to say that both Microsoft and Sony are fighting a war of attrition to maintain market share (2nd and 3rd place), while Apple and Nintendo are clearly leading the pack, be it in hand helds or smartphones.
It’s strange how history repeats itself, because this is exactly how Sony initially stole the race from Sega and Nintendo in the 90s.
Incidentally, forget about the xbox 720, it won’t see the light of day, because Microsoft will have to bail out of the console business (you can quote me on this), as for Apple… there’s a future contender for the crown. The next round will presumably be Apple vs Nintendo.
Just make sure to grab your shotgun to fight off the hipster scum.
FreeStanler
October 26, 2010 at 13:49
hahaha
Bobby Kotick for Dummies
October 26, 2010 at 13:56
Actually, it seems the market cap of Sony (i.e. the total value of shares) are actually well within reach of Apple. If they can get 51% of the shares for under $20 billion, they’d effectively gain control of Sony, and still be in the black.
Sweet Bananas… maybe there’s more to this.
:happy:
chainedfly2002
October 26, 2010 at 13:59
true dat
FreeStanler
October 26, 2010 at 14:00
I’m not a complete expert on this, but I think it is possible for Apple to buy Sony.
If Sony is in the $100 Billion range, Apple would use their cash ($51 Billion) and the rest would be a share exchange / Sony shareholders would be given Apple shares, usually more for what they are being exchanged for (Apple pays a premium to do this). This is if you assume that Apple definitely won’t take on debt, which I proffer they would still consider, even if its just a small amount. There is such a thing as an optimal debt structure.
What really interested me is that Adobe’s name came up. We know that Apple despises Flash, and don’t support it on iPhones, and don’t ship the Macs installed with it. If they actually take over Adobe, I assume it would bode really bad things for the programming industry, and computing in general. They could effectively control one of the biggest mediums used today in interactive end-user programmes.
So, is Apple the :devil: ? They’re so ‘closed-of’ and ‘controlling’. Yet they make such beautiful awesome products. My heart doesn’t know what to think.
Bobby Kotick for Dummies
October 26, 2010 at 14:05
Basically they just need buy enough to be majority shareholders, which is possible given that Sony’s market cap is only about $35 – 40 billion.
For just $20 billion, Sony could potentially be under new management.
ALKi
October 26, 2010 at 15:02
buy sony….?chances r far better the worlds gonna end 2012!
Fox1
October 26, 2010 at 16:47
The thing is that the PS4 and the Xbox 720 will be much cheaper to produce than the current gen consoles although having more power. So if Sony gets sold to Apple then they would be swimming in even more gold than they already have and currently they have a strong majority market share in electronic entertainment items amongst all age groups. They aren’t a niche with Mac fan’s anymore.
Steve Hofmeyr
October 26, 2010 at 16:58
I don’t really agree that future consoles will be cheaper. Remember that each console generation pushes future technology that’s expensive since they have to last a couple of years.
It’s either that or Msoft and Sony will take the nintendo route and release cheap underpowered consoles with a gimick (move and kinect).
Bobby Kotick for Dummies
October 26, 2010 at 17:48
Not to mention the inevitable R&D costs that need to be covered somehow. If you see leaps in tech for each successive console, then it’s only logical that the price of each console will be higher than the previous one (but obviously your price decreases as your console becomes longer in the teeth).
That’s probably why Nintendo managed to clean house as well, since the Wii is basically a gamecube, with a nifty new controller. Have to love the big N’
Fox1
October 26, 2010 at 22:18
the difference is that multicore cpus are the norm and so is full hd unlike when the 360 & PS3 where being put together. The future of console production lies in the 360 S. Intergrated CPU & GPU dies are the future. Have a look @ AMDs Fusion.