Confirming rumors that date back to the weeks leading up to E3 2012, Sony announced today that they intend acquire 100% of the equity in the cloud gaming company Gaikai Inc. for approximately $380 million before the end of August 2012.
The deal, which still awaits regulatory approval, would have Sony take full control over Gaikai’s video game streaming technology and network of datacenters. Sony did not reveal exactly what they are planning to do with the acquired assets, however, prior rumors suggested that they could use it to stream “next-gen” games to the PS3 or as a way of providing backwards compatibility to their current and future systems.
“By combining Gaikai’s resources including its technological strength and engineering talent with SCE’s extensive game platform knowledge and experience, SCE will provide users with unparalleled cloud entertainment experiences,” said Andrew House, President and Group CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment “SCE will deliver a world-class cloud-streaming service that allows users to instantly enjoy a broad array of content ranging from immersive core games with rich graphics to casual content anytime, anywhere on a variety of internet connected devices.”
David Perry, the CEO of Gaikai who previously claimed there wasn’t any truth to the acquisition rumors, added, “SCE has built an incredible brand with PlayStation and has earned the respect of countless millions of gamers worldwide. We’re honored to be able to help SCE rapidly harness the power of the interactive cloud and to continue to grow their ecosystem, to empower developers with new capabilities, to dramatically improve the reach of exciting content and to bring breathtaking new experiences to users worldwide.”
It remains to be seen what exactly will come out of this deal, but if taken to its fullest potential it could result in the PlayStation 3 becoming “future compatible” and allowing the aging system to go head-to-head with any future hardware releases from Microsoft or Nintendo.
Source: Sony (pdf)