Why gaming powerhouse Zynga bought Chartboost ... before getting bought by Take-Two

<p>Five days ago, gaming giant Take-Two bought Zynga for $13 billion. But before that, Zynga bought Chartboost for $250 million.</p> <p>What's going on?</p> <p>Why is a gaming company buying an ad network?</p> <p>And what does this say about the future of games and media?</p> <p>In this episode of TechFirst, we chat with Zynga Chief Product Officer Scott Koenigsberg and Chartboost CEO Rich Izzo.</p> <p><br></p> <p><strong>Questions we discuss:</strong></p> <p>Zynga bought an ad network for $250M. A decade ago that would have sounded insane. Why?</p> <p>We know Zynga for games. But you’re not the only combination of gaming and adtech. What’s driving this merger frenzy and consolidation?</p> <p>How does having Chartboost make Zynga better? How does having Zynga make Chartboost better?</p> <p>Are there downsides?</p> <p>Competitive issues?</p> <p>What’s evolving in tech and platforms that is changing the competitive landscape?</p> <p>What kind of platform that you can build will be well-optimized for the future state?</p> <p>Zynga has acquired other gaming studios as well. What’s the goal?</p> <p>Mobile was a phase-shift in technology that privileged some platforms and networks and deprioritized others. What’s the next one … do you have metaverse bets, and what kind of timetable to you envision there?</p> <p>How will this change your business?</p> <p>Planning to still be acquisitive?</p> <p><br></p> <p>Links:</p> <p>Support TechFirst with $SMRT coins: https://rally.io/creator/SMRT/</p> <p>Buy $SMRT to join a community focused on tech for good: the emerging world of smart matter. Access my private Slack, get your name in my book, suggest speakers for TechFirst ... and support my work.</p> <p><br></p> <p>TechFirst transcripts: https://johnkoetsier.com/category/tech-first/</p> <p>Forbes columns: https://www.forbes.com/sites/johnkoetsier/&nbsp;</p> <p>Full videos: https://www.youtube.com/c/johnkoetsier?sub_confirmation=1&nbsp;</p> <p>Keep in touch: https://twitter.com/johnkoetsier&nbsp;</p> <p><br></p>