Disney boss reportedly advised to acquire large video game publisher like EA

Disney's CEO Bob Iger is reportedly being pushed to acquire a major video game publisher, such as EA.

That's according to Bloomberg (paywall), which stated Iger's deputies are keen for the exec "to consider a bolder transformation of Disney from gaming licensee to gaming giant". This could be done through the acquisition of a major publisher, with EA being specifically cited by the publication.

But while Iger's advisors are suggesting that Disney do purchase a company such as EA, at the present time Iger is reportedly remaining "non committal" to the idea. So, do not expect to hear any big announcements in the near future.

During his tenure as Disney's CEO, Iger has been instrumental in acquiring a number of major studios, including Pixar in 2006, Lucasfilm in 2012 and Marvel in 2009.

EA, meanwhile, currently has a licensing agreement with Marvel, and by extension Disney, to produce three games under the Marvel banner. This includes an Iron Man title from Star Wars Squadrons studio Motive and a game based on Black Panther.

Black Panther, which was officially announced earlier this year after several rumours, is being developed by EA's new Seattle studio Cliffhanger Games.

This licensing agreement comes roughly a decade after EA made a multi-year exclusivity deal with Disney to develop and publish new Star Wars games across multiple platforms. However, there were a number of controversies during this reign of EA Star Wars exclusivity, which saw several promising Star Wars games, including Amy Hennig's Project Ragtag, shut down.

Additionally, Star Wars Battlefront 2's loot boxes were investigated by multiple government agencies during this period.

On the acquisition front, last year it was reported that EA was pursuing merger opportunities with "a number of different potential suitors" including Amazon, Apple, NBCUniversal, and, as it happens, Disney.

At this time, it was said EA felt "emboldened in the wake of the Microsoft-Activision deal". However, no such acquisitions have since materialised.