What a week for acquisition rumors as Microsoft is rumored to be after peripheral pimp – Logitech and internet king – Yahoo. We look at the impact it could have on the Xbox after the jump:
Last Thursday, rumors of Microsoft planning an acquisition of Logitech were so wide-spread that the computer and console manufacturer’s stock rose a whopping 12%. While there’s still nothing concrete on this rumor just yet, we wanted to look at why this could happen and how it could benefit the Xbox 360.
Logitech has long been known as a computer peripheral maker that likes to dabble in console controllers and add-ons. Microsoft has scaled back it’s own peripheral manufacturing over the last couple years. If Logitech were to be purchased by MS, it could mean we would see a host of new and quality gaming gizmos for the Xbox 360 and next generation of Xbox hardware. With a quality track record for racing wheels and controllers, there’s no doubt MS could benefit from dipping into the R&D department of Logitech for gaming related peripherals.
Something to think about: Logitech has a rich history making peripherals for Sony made consoles. You have to wonder what they’ve been working on for the Sony consoles lately and exactly how the contracts were written up. Because if MS acquires the company, they could acquire whatever technologies Logitech holds licenses to. Again, we’re not sure of how these license contracts were setup, but it’s something to think about.
Next up is the Yahoo acquisition rumor. [I’ve never used the word acquisition so much] This rumor has spread like wild fire since word broke from the New York Post. The reason gamers should be interested in an MS purchase of Yahoo is simple. Yahoo is the number one internet site in the world and the biggest competitor to Google on just about every front. Yahoo has R&D going on for just about everything imaginable that has to do with internet technologies. This includes digital delivery services of video and gaming content. And due to recent issues with XBL, we all know MS could use any new help they can get in bettering their online services.
Something to think about: MSN combined with Yahoo. MSN Zone (online gaming) combined with Yahoo games. The list goes on and thanks to the trickle down effect; it could only make Xbox gaming better.
XF’s Take:
Both of these rumors sound great. But with the Yahoo purchase ranging up into the area of $50 billion and the Logitech venture getting pretty high up there too, we seriously doubt both of these purchases can happen. We’ll just have to wait and see. There are a lot of benefits to be had for Xbox gamers in the long run if either of these rumors pan out though.
