Microsoft is said to be in advanced talk in acquiring Minecraft for $2 billion, a person requesting anonymity said.
It's said that there are many details both parties are working out, but the plan can fall through. The Wall Street Journal reported the deal on Tuesday.
Minecraft's brick-like interface may seem dated compared to other games coming out in the market, but the privately owned Sweden-based Mojang, the maker of Minecraft, said that the company's revenue last year was $360 million. Unlike the start-up games cropping up in the market, it's already a lucrative and established business.
The move to sell the company to Microsoft surprises the technical world since Markus Persson, Mojang co-founder, has declined selling the company in the past. It has canceled plans to produce a design compatible with Facebook because according to Persson, Facebook "creeps" him out. The 25-person staffed company resisted being a bigger player and to be listed in the stock carpet.
"We've always felt that the independence we have is one of our core strengths. We can take decisions by going into a room and in 15 minutes we're done. We try to be extremely agile, to release games quickly," said Carl Manneh, one of the co-founders of Mojang.
Microsoft first approached the small-scale company three months, in which insiders said that Persson already considered the sale. More discussions followed the first meeting, and Persson hired legal counsel to advise on the deal.
Mojang is known for its fun work environment, where managers wear a tuxedo and a purple tie to work and employees are given the benefits of playing board games and a pinball machine during the break.
While it surprised no one that Microsoft is interested in buying the maker of Minecraft due to its young fanbase, enthusiasts wonder how the bureaucracy will change Mojang.
