Microsoft says no plans to buy Electronic Arts

CHIBA, Japan (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp has no plans to acquire Electronic Arts, a Microsoft executive said, shooting down unsubstantiated talk of a potential bid that triggered a spike in the video game publisher's shares.

"We have no plans to acquire EA," Phil Spencer, corporate vice president of Microsoft Game Studios, told Reuters in an interview on Thursday. "They remain a very important partner to us. No acquisitions."

Spencer declined to comment on whether it had held talks with Electronics Arts on such a move.

Shares of Electronics Arts jumped more than 8 percent on Wednesday on unsubstantiated talk that Microsoft may want to buy the video game publisher.

Last year, Electronic Arts, the publisher of popular titles like "Madden" football, unsuccessfully pursued a buyout of rival video game company Take Two Interactive Software.

The Redwood City, California-based company, which has a market value of US$6.5-billion, is frequently named by traders as a target for Walt Disney Co and Time Warner Inc.