The $55 billion buyout of EA is being contested through an unlikely alliance between a couple of members of The Sims‘ content creation community and an elected representative of the United States Congress, who are organizing an informative online event to discuss the matter. This cooperative action between streamers Lilsimsie and Zefrine and Maxwell Frost, representative for Florida’s 10th congressional district, is intended to let fans know what they can do to stop EA from being bought out by a consortium of private investors.
EA was founded in 1982 and has been a publicly traded company on the stock market since 1990. However, that’s likely to change soon, as in September 2025, a private buyout deal of EA was announced, with a group of investors including the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia, Silver Lake Financial, and Affinity Partners planning to take ownership. The deal is expected to close in June 2026, after which EA would lose its status as a publicly traded company.
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Congress Member and Streamers Team Up to Keep EA Privatization Deal From Happening
Fans of EA games may be able to take action to prevent the private acquisition of EA, and an informational livestream event has been planned for April 15th at 10 AM ET on the Twitch channel of Lilsimsie, a former member of the EA Creator Network. During the event, Lilsimsie will be streaming Stardew Valley alongside Frost and fellow Sims 4 content creator Zefrine, but the main focus is expected to be an informative lecture about the nature of the $55 billion buyout, during which Frost will likely be offering options to fans interested in stopping the deal from closing.
The opposition provided by Lilsimie against the private investors speaks for a large portion of the fan community of The Sims 4, which is one game under the EA banner that many fear is likely to see a lot of changes under new ownership. Shortly after the buyout deal was announced, many fans became concerned that the diversity options offered by The Sims 4 would be limited or censored under the new ownership, especially due to the perception of its more conservative social leanings. This includes Affinity Partners, which was founded by Jared Kushner, son-in-law of U.S. President Donald Trump. Saudi Arabia’s anti-LGBTQIA+ stance, which includes legal repercussions up to and including the death penalty, is also setting off major alarm bells.
As for Frost, he is the youngest member of Congress, having been elected to his seat in 2022 at the age of 25. Campaigning on platforms of social justice, gun violence prevention, and criminal justice reform, he currently serves as co-chair of the House Democratic Policy and Communications Committee, and his focus seems to now include protection of competitive markets and jobs in the entertainment software sphere. His stance against the buyout isn’t unique on Capitol Hill, as a group of U.S. representatives and senators publicly contesting EA’s acquisition number at least 46, with fears that the buyout deal could lead to studio closures, layoffs, and even threats to national security.
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Much is still up in the air about the acquisition deal and what its repercussions will entail, but current leadership at EA has urged fans to remain calm. In an official statement regarding the EA buyout, released in December, EA officials stated that under the proposed deal, they will retain creative control over the company’s intellectual properties, both present and future, and that business is expected to proceed with very few noticeable changes. This message followed a similar one from the team at Maxis, developer of The Sims franchise, which stated that The Sims 4 would continue to provide “a space where you can express your authentic self.” Maxis’ message was targeted at members of the custom content community, asking them to avoid abandoning ship in light of the proposed privatization of EA, but it was generally unsuccessful, resulting in a high number of creators abandoning the game.
- Released
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September 2, 2014
- ESRB
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T for Teen: Crude Humor, Sexual Themes, Violence
- Publisher(s)
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Electronic Arts
