Hasbro acquires D&D Beyond from Fandom for $146M

HASBRO INC. has acquired D&D Beyond, a digital toolset for the toy company’s Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, from Fandom for $146.3 million. / COURTESY HASBRO INC.
HASBRO INC. has acquired D&D Beyond, a digital toolset for the toy company’s Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, from Fandom for $146.3 million. / COURTESY HASBRO INC.

PAWTUCKET – Hasbro Inc. Wednesday acquired D&D Beyond, a digital toolset for the toy company’s Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, from Fandom Inc. for $146.3 million.

D&D Beyond, which has nearly 10 million registered users, will now be part of Hasbro’s Wizards of the Coast division, despite that branch being the focus of an ongoing proxy battle between Hasbro and activist investor Alta Fox Capital Management. Wizards of the Coast division also has Magic: The Gathering and other digital and tabletop franchises.

Alta Fox, which owns about 2.5% of Hasbro shares, has pushed for Hasbro to spin off Wizards of the Coast into a separate company.

D&D Beyond has paid a royalty to Hasbro over the last three years, fueling Dungeons and Dragons revenue growth, according to the announcement of the acquisition. Hasbro said buying D&D Beyond will deliver a direct relationship with fans, providing valuable, data-driven insights to unlock opportunities for growth in new product development, live services and tools, and regional expansions.

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“The acquisition of D&D Beyond will accelerate our progress in both gaming and direct to consumer, two priority areas of growth for Hasbro, providing immediate access to a loyal, growing player base,” said Hasbro CEO Chris Cocks “Hasbro’s gaming portfolio is among the largest and most profitable in the industry, and we continue to make strategic investments to grow our brands, including in digital.”

The transaction will be funded out of cash on hand and has been approved by both Hasbro’s and Fandom’s boards of directors.

“This is the perfect next step for the talented D&D Beyond team, who built a transformative digital product that engaged and delighted millions of D&D fans around the world,” said Perkins Miller, CEO of Fandom. “We can’t wait to see what this team will do next as an integral part of the D&D franchise, and I look forward to investing in more brands and products to super-serve Fandom’s 300 million-plus global fans.”

 

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