"We're all done. The gaming industry will end up under a monopoly"

The head of Amazon's gaming division responds to rumors that they almost bought EA, and also has a gloomy forecast for the future of the industry

Matan Benishi, the gaming channel system

07/09/2022

Wednesday, September 7, 2022, 4:35 p.m. Updated: 4:42 p.m.

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Over the past few years, there has been a kind of arms race in the gaming industry, and quite a few companies are making huge purchases.

Examples from recent years include Microsoft's acquisition of Activision-Blizzard and Bethesda, or Microsoft acquiring Insomniac, Bungie and several other developers in a relatively short period of time.

The purchase of Square Enix's western keys by the Swedish holding group Embracer Groups is also a great example, and there is no end in sight for the phenomenon anytime soon.

Last month, a rumor was published that Amazon plans to acquire EA.

It didn't end up happening, but for a moment, it was awfully easy to believe that it would actually be the case.

Especially with the pace of the industry today.

microsoft atcivision-blizzard (photo: official website, Microsoft)

Now the director of Amazon's gaming division,

, responds to the rumor in an interview and states that in his opinion the future of the industry is to end up under a monopoly, and how it is in a completely different situation than it was in the past, about two decades ago: "In the long run, we are all finished. Every business is finished. Every There will be no further constitutional intervention, we have ended up under a monopoly."

Hartman continued: "I'm not saying Amazon is headed there. I'm saying there are fewer and fewer players on the field. I've been in the industry for 25 years, and the amount of game companies and developers I saw then compared to today... and now Activision is sold. Who's left? Take-Two and -EA".

From there, Hartman stated that the whole acquisition matter with EA was only rumours.

The director of Amazon's gaming division: "The gaming industry will end up under a monopoly" (photo: official website, Amazon Games)

Hartman did not rule out the fact that Amazon may acquire keys in the future, but as the director of the gaming division, he believes that the growth and expansion will come from talent that the company will cultivate and build exclusive brands, rather than acquiring an outside party.

According to him, it's organic growth that enchants him more: "According to my experience, when you buy game keys, it doesn't work with half of them. It requires a lot of work, and sometimes it's better to start from scratch."

Distribution of distributors and keys in the industry (as of February 2022)

So is the future of the industry really to end under a monopoly?

The grim answer is that it probably is.

You can also look at the film industry for comparison.

Disney has purchased just about everything possible and is currently the giant that owns Marvel, Star Wars, The Simpsons, and so many other brands.

One can take solace in the fact that the Antitrust Authority is examining the Activision-Blizzard merger with Microsoft to prevent such a situation.

So maybe it will take many, many years and the advancement of technology will definitely affect the final result, but it doesn't look like the situation is going to change.

We are going to hear a lot more about acquisitions and investments by various companies in the near-distant future.

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