Microsoft and Fox, the makers of popular online gaming software, have announced a $2.8 billion agreement to buy the company Nexon.
Fox and Nexon will share the assets of Nexon, which was founded in 2005 by former Nintendo president Satoru Iwata.
Nexon’s gaming service will be called Nexon GameStream.
The two companies will have about 5 million users worldwide, according to the terms of the deal.
Nexo is the name of the company’s parent company.
Fox’s chief executive, Brian Moynihan, is the CEO of Fox Interactive Entertainment, the parent company of Fox News.
Fox will retain about 40% of Nexo’s assets, according the agreement.
“We’re thrilled to be working with Microsoft and Nexo on this important partnership,” Moynihann said in a statement.
“The Nexon brand will be a core part of the Fox portfolio and our game players will enjoy Nexon games and services, and we look forward to the continued growth of Nexons games and service.”
Microsoft has been trying to buy Fox for several years.
Fox said last month it would seek a buyer, and the company has since been working to develop a new strategy.
The company is hoping to create a gaming-centric network that would offer live-streamed live video content to consumers and provide gaming services that include news and weather.
It also hopes to create mobile gaming applications, including one that could let people play games on their phones while playing on their TVs.
“Microsoft’s focus is squarely on gaming, and as we look ahead, we believe the best way to make gaming more compelling for our customers is to continue building on the incredible success of Nexomods mobile games and our popular Fox mobile games,” Moynihan said in the statement.
Microsoft is also trying to build an online gaming platform, known as the Xbox gaming platform.
“As Microsoft moves into the gaming market, we are investing heavily in gaming content and games that bring gamers together and entertain them,” Microsoft said in its statement.
In November, Fox announced it would launch a gaming service called Nexomod, which will be free to play and available on the Xbox Live Marketplace.
Microsoft also is looking to acquire Nexon in a deal that could be worth $20 billion.
Nexomogames.com, which Nexon launched in 2006, will become a part of Nexenews, which Microsoft is developing.
The gaming service is a free service that will launch in 2020.
Nexenew.com was launched in November.
