Microsoft Corp. share price up, in advanced talks over a $2 billion acquisition of Mojang AB

According to people familiar with the process, the biggest software maker in the world – Microsoft Corp. is in advanced negotiations over the acquisition of Mojang AB, which is the software company that created the immensely successful Minecraft game.

The people, who asked not to be identified because the talks are still private, said that the price of the deal is expected to be more than $2 billion. The acquisition may be finalized as soon as this week.

Microsofts spokesman Frank Shaw refused to make any comments on the situation. So did the Chief Executive Officer of Mojang – Mr. Carl Manneh. Mojangs representatives did not respond to e-mail requests to comment outside the normal business hours.

The acquisition of Minecrafts creator will bolster Microsofts push into online gaming, which will help the U.S.-based company to become more attractive to a new generation of customers, especially when it comes to smartphones.

In addition, if the companies are to complete the takeover, this would be the biggest deal for Microsoft since Chief Executive Officer Mr. Satya Nadella took over the helm in February 2014. Over the months after he took control of the company, Mr. Nadella has been focused on making Microsoft more oriented towards Internet-based and cloud-computing services. He has been also trying to make the companys Xbox more attractive to serious gamers.

In July this year, Mr. Nadella explained that the company considers videogames as one of the ways to expand its reach in PCs and mobile phones. As reported by the Wall Street Journal, in a letter to the companys employees he called gaming “single biggest digital life category, measured in both time and money spent, in a mobile-first world”.

According to one of the people close to the process, Microsoft intends to pay for the deal with cash held overseas which would have favorable tax consequences for the company.

Microsoft Corp. rose by 0.62% on Tuesday to close at $46.76 per share on the NASDAQ, marking a one-year change of +47.72%. The company is valued at $385.30 billion. According to CNN Money, the 28 analysts offering 12-month price forecasts for Microsoft Corp. have a median target of $47.00, with a high estimate of $56.00 and a low estimate of $34.00. The median estimate represents a +0.51% increase from the last price of $46.76.