Would Microsoft Buy Fortnite Headset-Maker Turtle Beach?
*By Michael Teich*
High-flying gaming headset maker Turtle Beach could find itself a buyer in Microsoft.
That's according to D.A. Davidson senior research analyst Tom Forte, who told Cheddar the company could be an acquisition target as the Xbox-maker angles to become a bigger player in the video game world.
"I would argue Microsoft could just as well buy Turtle Beach rather than try to come up with Microsoft's own lineup of console headsets," Forte said. "Their sweet spot is really the console, and not necessarily the accessories."
While Forte believes Microsoft ($MSFT) has cachet with esports gamers thanks to the Xbox, he thinks the challenge would ultimately be to create a headset that is technologically superior to what Turtle Beach ($HEAR) offers.
Even high-end audio companies like Beats, owned by Apple ($AAPL), have trouble breaking into the esports business.
"No disrespect to Beats, but this isn't really about marketing dollars. It's about who's offering me the best technology so I can play the games I like as effective as possible," Forte said.
Turtle Beach makes headsets for a variety of consoles, including PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, and Xbox One.
Shares have soared this year, fueled by the viral popularity of social games like mega-hit "Fortnite," which posted a new record monthly player count of 78 million in August. And though the stock has pulled back from its highs of early August, they're still up more than 1,000 percent in 2018.
For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/microsoft-could-buy-turtle-beach-says-analyst-tom-forte).
Almost four dozen Venezuelan workers who had temporary protected status have been put on leave by Disney after the U.S. Supreme Court allowed the Trump administration to strip them of legal protections.
The Republican-controlled Federal Trade Commission is abandoning a Biden-era effort to block Microsoft’s purchase of “Call of Duty” video game maker Activision Blizzard.
The Justice Department has reached a deal with Boeing that will allow the company to avoid criminal prosecution for allegedly misleading U.S. regulators about the 737 Max jetliner before two of the planes crashed and killed 346 people.
After a bumpy ride, the ride-hailing app is back in the good graces of investors. Plus: OpenAI, Google, Apple, Target, Moody's, Paramount, and Golden Dome.
Smoke that filled the cabin of a Delta flight as it took off from the Atlanta airport in February was so thick the led flight attendant had trouble seeing past the first row of passengers and the pilots donned oxygen masks as a precaution.
