Unity, the engine that powers a wide number of MMORPGs as well as other games, is hoping to improve its fiscal fortunes through a recently announced merger with ironSource, a platform designed to help app developers monetize by providing tools for ads, cross-channel marketing, and distribution.
The merger will be done through an all-stock transaction that values ironSource at $4.4B and will also bring a $1B aggregate investment from Unity’s biggest shareholders Silver Lake and Sequoia. The transaction is expected to close at the end of the fourth quarter.
The merger is being heralded as a way to “power creators’ success as they build, run, manage, grow, and monetize live games and real-time 3-D content” by combining Unity’s game engine and editor, Unity Ads, and other Unity Gaming Services with ironSource’s mediation and publishing feature set, as well as a benefit to shareholders by way of an estimated run rate of $1 billion in adjusted EBITDA by the end of 2024.
Of course, this does nothing for the reported hundreds of layoffs that Unity employees suffered.
