(2010-07-30) Disney Social M And A

Since paying $350 million for the kids' social network Club Penguin three years ago, Dis Ney has purchased WideloadGames, whose founder helped create Microsoft's (MSFT) hit Halo franchise. Early last month, the entertainment giant acquired TapulOus, a publisher of music-related games for Apple's (AAPL) iPhone. On July 27, Disney made its biggest video game bet yet, agreeing to pay $563 million for privately held Play Dom, the Mountain View (Calif.) maker of Sorority Life and MobSters, which are played on FaceBook, MySpace, and Mobile phones. (M And A, Social Media)