The rapidly growing player chat platform, Discord, is in talks with Microsoft over an acquisition that values the company at about $ 10 billion, according to several reports.
None of the companies declined to comment on the Venturebeat and Bloomberg accounts.
The deal would strengthen Microsoft’s position in the video game industry, which has exploded since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic in early 2020. The tech giant’s Xbox platform is a top-of-the-line console, and last year the company paid $ 7 , 5 billion by ZeniMax Media and its game publisher, Bethesda Softworks.
Discord has other strategic options besides being purchased, Bloomberg said, one of which would be going public in a market that has been favorable to IPOs recently. The company has raised nearly $ 500 million in seed capital so far, according to Crunchbase. That total includes $ 100 million last year in a $ 7 billion valuation.
Founded in 2015, Discord now claims to have 100 million users. Initially, it only served players, but it gained additional traction and infamy as a platform used by white supremacists planning a rally in Charlottesville, VA, in 2017. In 2020, after protests across the country against racial injustice brought about by the death of George Floyd , the start-up announced a set of initiatives aimed at restricting the use of Discord by hate groups.
In addition to facilitating audio chats between various people playing popular games, such as Call to action, Discord facilitates other social discussions. He makes money from selling subscriptions and also from some game sales involving his platform.
Investors, who have taken Microsoft shares to an all-time high, adjusted by the division, from $ 246.13 in the past few weeks, do not appear to have an immediate reaction to the reports of the negotiations. The company’s stock closed at $ 237.58, a fraction up.