Amongst the news, one small nugget spotted in Sony’s earnings report was how the company is going to allocate the $3.6bn it spent on acquiring Bungie. In the report, Sony estimates that approximately a third of the money will be used for “deferred payments to employee shareholders, conditional upon their continued employment, and other retention incentives” (thanks, TweakTown). In other words, Sony will be spending $1.2bn on incentives to retain Bungie staff after its buyout takes place - and says it will do so for “several years”. The remainder of the money will be used to directly purchase private shares of the studio. The Washington Post reported that the deal meant some staff would receive “roughly a year’s worth of income” in compensation - though not all at once. “Employees will receive 50 percent of their equity payouts when the Sony deal closes and 50 percent over the next few years,” the report stated. Under the terms of the deal, Bungie will be a part of Sony Worldwide Studios which can “self-publish and reach players wherever they choose to play”. In yesterday’s investor presentation, Sony also said the acquisition will support the company in its wider ambitions to create more live-service titles.
