What's going on?

Gaming giant Take-Two Interactive announced on Monday that it�s buying Farmville-creator Zynga, so get ready to pop a cap in a darling tulip arrangement’s ass.

What does this mean?

The pandemic�s spawned a lot of gamers over the past couple of years, but they haven�t called it quits just because lockdowns are behind them: they�ve shifted to mobile gaming instead. And Take-Two wants a piece of the virtual pie: the maker of Grand Theft Auto is buying all of Zynga�s shares for $11 billion � around 64% more than the mobile gaming specialist was worth before the deal was announced. That makes the acquisition one of the biggest-ever in the gaming industry, and will turn Take-Two into one of the world�s most prominent mobile game publishers. Take-Two is feeling confident about the move: the company reckons the deal could save it around $100 million a year and generate over $500 million in revenue.

Why should I care?

The bigger picture: Mobile�s where the money is.
Take-Two�s announcement comes just a year after rival Electronic Arts pushed into mobile gaming by buying Glu Mobile for $2 billion. They might be onto something: a recent report showed that revenue from mobile games made up a massive 52% of the gaming market last year. Consider too that mobile gaming revenue grew 7% last year even as revenue from consoles fell, and the sector seems like the place to be.

Zooming out: Start as you mean to go on.
Take-Two�s deal could be the beginning of another record-breaking year for mergers and acquisitions (M&A). After all, a new survey has shown that nearly two-thirds of CEOs think their companies will pursue M&A this year � up 48% from the start of 2021. That is, providing inflation doesn�t get in the way: 87% of participants also said they�re worried about rising prices, which could end up eating into their spare cash.