Posted in: Dungeons & Dragons, Games, Tabletop, Wizards of the Coast | Tagged: d&d, dd-beyond, dungeons & dragons, wizards of the coast

Hasbro Has Acquired D&D Beyond From Fandom

Published Wed, 13 Apr 2022 09:53:10 -0500

by Gavin Sheehan

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In a move we're surprised didn't happen earlier, Hasbro has announced they have acquired D&D Beyond from Fandom. For nearly five years the platform has served as the digital front for players to get all their information, create character sheets, and own a virtual catalog of Fifth Edition books, totally at their disposal either on a browser or through the mobile app. Originally it was started by Curse LLC, but just over a year after launch, Fandom acquired all of the company's assets including the system. But it prompted fans to question why Hasbro didn't make a play toward purchasing it when the chance became available.

That's officially changed today as the company bought it from Fandom for $146.3 million in cash, and will be handing it over to Wizards of the Coast (publishers of D&D) to manage the content going forward. No word yet on how current accounts will be handled, or the current libraries, or the app, or really anything else beyond the fact they now have control over it. Hopefully, some of those questions will get answered in the near future. Here's a few quotes from today's announcement.

Hasbro Has Acquired D&D Beyond From Fandom — Credit: Hasbro

"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 Chris Cocks, Hasbro Chief Executive Officer. "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."

"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+ global fans."

"D&D Beyond has been one of our most valuable partners in the digital space for the past six years and we're excited to bring their best-in-class talent onto our team," said Cynthia Williams, President of Wizards of the Coast and Digital Gaming. "The team at D&D Beyond has built an incredible digital platform, and together we will deliver the best-possible Dungeons & Dragons experience for players around the world."