In an interesting development today, both Microsoft and EA stocks rose slightly today, after rumors of talks went around of a possible obtaining the third-party giant. If it there is any truth to this rumor, this could possibly be one of the biggest acquisition in gaming history.

Hypothetically, if a trader were to go through successfully, it would mean a complete shift in the current console wars. EA is the largest 3rd party developer, responsible for a wide variety of games and genres (most notably EA Sports). It currently holds the exclusive rights to the National Football League, Harry Potter, Need for Speed, and Metal of Honor, to name a few. It also hold rights to EA Partners program, which distributes popular games such as Rock Band. On the downside, EA would probably lose the NFL exclusive rights, due to a “change of ownership” clause between the two, which actually would be a good blow to the Madden franchise. Plus, quality of the games might deteriorate, as EA has had a history of erratic production of certain titles.

This is all a hypothetical statement, as it is highly unlikely this is going to occur. EA would lose a lot of money in PS3 and Wii sales, if it were exclusive (plus, any current contract with certain content would be terminated). EA’s independence as a third party would be lost, to which many think EA likes to keep. Plus, EA’s histories of mergers has proven to be utter failures, as last years attempted hostile takeover of Take-Two Interactive proved to be unsuccessful. It is interesting to point out though, that several high members of EA are former Microsoft employees, so you never know what schemes could be taking place.

You can never say never in the gaming business, but don’t hold your breath to see if this actually happens.

Source: Gamespot; Ign