Discord has reportedly decided not to sell itself to Microsoft or any other company for now. The hot voice chat app was apparently in talks with the tech giant to sell itself. The talks that started in March had valued Discord for around USD 10 billion. The company was negotiating with at least three other companies besides Microsoft. Other potential buyers reportedly included both Epic Games and Amazon. Despite all the big names on the list of buyers, Discord has reportedly decided to stay independent. People privy to the development also said that the chat app is considering a potential public listing to build on the reputation.
The chat app already has over 140 million monthly users. But the only worry for the company is that it is not profit making. This despite the fact that it earned about USD 130 million in revenue last year. Microsoft was interested in the deal because of Discord’s role as a home for online communities. Creators who look for cultivating their own forums go for the Discord app. Also, homegrown groups that are at the centre of the video and tabletop roleplaying games are using the app. Microsoft is desperately looking for a way to be a part of the day-to-day lives of a large number of consumers.
The company is lagging behind in this and it was hoping a solution through the deal. This is the reason Microsoft has launched Teams for personal use. But is Discord is better placed and has built-in familiarity with consumers. Users of Discord don’t get the feeling of enterprise software. While some reports suggest that Microsoft is still looking for a way forward, Discord has decided to go in its own way. This decision makes sense as the company is looking to keep its unique identity intact. This wouldn’t be possible by getting merged with a big company. Also, the valuation of the company has doubled recently and the prospects are looking bright in 2021. Discord was even well ahead of the latest apps like Clubhouse.
