The Congressional Labor Caucus, with support from the Communications Workers of America, on Thursday released a letter to the Federal Trade Commission requesting a review of the $55 billion sale of Electronic Arts to a group of investors made up of Silver Lake, Affinity, and (primarily) Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund. The Caucus expressed concern over the proposed deal's potential effect on workers and on competition within the games industry.
The letter, signed by 46 House Democrats, "urge[s] the Commission to conduct a thorough investigation into the labor market consequences of this proposed acquisition, including EA’s existing wage-setting power, the likelihood of post-transaction layoffs, the degree of labor-market concentration in relevant geographic and occupational markets, and the role of cross-ownership in shaping labor outcomes."
The Caucus takes issue with several parts of the deal. One is that, given that "EA is one of the largest employers of video game workers in the United States," the company has outsized power over game workers' jobs and pay. Noting that "EA has eliminated more than 1,700 U.S. jobs since 2023, contributing to an industry-wide total of over 35,000 layoffs since 2022," the letter highlights the $20 billion in debt that's set to finance the deal, which could lead to further layoffs as EA seeks to cut costs. It also raises the possibility of "offshoring, restructuring, or studio closures," all of which "not only jeopardize thousands of high-skilled American jobs, but also further concentrate already fragile labor markets" in the games industry.
The Caucus also notes that the deal would bring EA under the same ownership as "sports leagues, sports-betting platforms, talent management, and game-development tools," writing that
For example, Silver Lake’s ties to WME and TKO, along with PIF’s ownership of LIV Golf, would put EA under the same umbrella as major sports and entertainment brands that its games rely on for key licenses. This level of cross-ownership presents risks of self-preferencing and anticompetitive coordination across these sports, sports-related talent, and sports-related video game business lines. This could, consequently, restrict worker mobility and reduce bargaining power for employees throughout the industry.
Back in October, the president of the CWA sent a similar letter to the FTC and the Committee on Foreign Investment in the US, urging the organizations to review the deal. The letter to CFIUS also raised concerns about "critical national security risks due to EA’s (1) access to and collection of sensitive personal data from millions of American consumers and (2) current and planned development of artificial intelligence (AI) technology."
The deal was approved by EA shareholders in late December and now goes to regulatory review. Given the current political climate in the US, and given that Affinity was founded by Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner, the odds any of these letters amount to anything feel pretty slim to me. But I'm heartened to see a number of US politicians recognize the magnitude of this deal and its potential consequences on games workers. As the letter concludes, "workers deserve a fair, competitive marketplace where their skills are valued," and this sale is certainly not a way to get it.
Nathan Grayson
