NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- In a move that could bring Mickey Mouse into the online gaming world, Walt Disney Co. said it is buying social game developer Playdom Inc. in a deal worth up to $763 million.
Mountain View, Calif.-based Playdom is among the leading makers of online social games, including Social City and Sorority Life, and engages an estimated 42 million active players each month, Disney said in a statement released late Tuesday.
The deal will position Disney (DIS, Fortune 500) to strengthen its digital gaming portfolio and allow the company to interact with consumers on Facebook and MySpace.
"This acquisition furthers our strategy of allocating capital to high-growth businesses that can benefit from our many characters, stories and brands, delivering them in a creatively compelling way to a new generation of fans on the platforms they prefer," said Robert Iger, Disney's CEO.
Disney said Playdom will initially receive $563.2 million in the deal, and could reap an additional $200 million if it meets performance targets that were not made public. The deal is expected to close by the end of Disney's 2010 fiscal year in October.
Playdom is also among the game developers in talks with Google as it tries to build a social network to compete with Facebook, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Officials at Playdom and Google were not immediately available for comment. 
| Index | Last | Change | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dow | 32,627.97 | -234.33 | -0.71% |
| Nasdaq | 13,215.24 | 99.07 | 0.76% |
| S&P 500 | 3,913.10 | -2.36 | -0.06% |
| Treasuries | 1.73 | 0.00 | 0.12% |
| Company | Price | Change | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ford Motor Co | 8.29 | 0.05 | 0.61% |
| Advanced Micro Devic... | 54.59 | 0.70 | 1.30% |
| Cisco Systems Inc | 47.49 | -2.44 | -4.89% |
| General Electric Co | 13.00 | -0.16 | -1.22% |
| Kraft Heinz Co | 27.84 | -2.20 | -7.32% |
|
Bankrupt toy retailer tells bankruptcy court it is looking at possibly reviving the Toys 'R' Us and Babies 'R' Us brands. More |
Land O'Lakes CEO Beth Ford charts her career path, from her first job to becoming the first openly gay CEO at a Fortune 500 company in an interview with CNN's Boss Files. More |
Honda and General Motors are creating a new generation of fully autonomous vehicles. More |
In 1998, Ntsiki Biyela won a scholarship to study wine making. Now she's about to launch her own brand. More |
Whether you hedge inflation or look for a return that outpaces inflation, here's how to prepare. More |
