Rumor: Microsoft Interested in EA

Yet another rumor hitting the rounds today as The Street reports there is some chatter that Microsoft may be looking at purchasing Electronic Arts. The EA stock has risen slightly with the talk as the catalyst. This rumor seems less likely than the one about EA acquiring THQ but it is worth keeping an eye on because of the ramifications of such a deal.

This would certainly be a huge coup for MS if they were to acquire EA as that would give them the ability to have the games as exclusives for the Xbox 360 and future consoles if they chose to do so. Many of the EA Sports titles could become exclusive, however that would not be the case with all of them due to the specifics of exclusive licenses. The NFL contract requires that their game be released on all platforms so Madden would remain on the PS3 and others. This could also result in the long awaited return of the MVP Baseball franchise which would be a welcome sight for 360 owners.