Rovio Turns Down a $2.2 Billion Buyout Offer from Zynga

The New York Times is reporting that Rovio — creators of our beloved Angry Birds — turned down a $2.2 billion (that’s $2,200,000,000) buyout offer from Zynga.  Neither company has confirmed this, but it sounds like it’s more than just a rumor.

If true, this is the second high profile buyout attempt by Zynga this year. This summer they failed to acquire PopCap — creators of Bejeweled and Plants vs. Zombies — for just under a billion dollars.  EA later aquired PopCap for around $1.3 billion.

I, for one, applaud Rovio for being able to stand their ground and turn down such an enormous pile of money.  I don’t know a lot about Zynga, nor do I play their games, but based on the articles I’ve read it sounds like the company’s internal dynamics may in part hinder their ability to acquire top tier game developers like Rovio and PopCap.

With any franchise as massive as Angry Birds many people like to gripe about this or that, but I am very thankful that Angry Birds is under Rovio’s control.  Nobody is perfect, but they don’t nickle and dime us and continue to provide regular, high quality updates without charge (I can’t wait for Wreck the Halls!).  Yes, I know some platforms are slower to get updates than others, but would you rather they charge you a nickle for every pull of the slingshot.  I didn’t think so.  Thanks, Rovio.