A Call Of Duty To Competitors?
Is Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard in trouble?
The biggest deal in gaming history has faced steep criticism from regulators and competitors
Company Profile
Activision Blizzard
Website
www.activisionblizzard.com
About
Activision Blizzard, formerly Activision, is the American holding company for Activision and Blizzard Entertainment. The company is majority owned by French conglomerate Vivendi, and was created through the merger of Activision and Vivendi Games (formerly Vivendi Universal Games), announced on December 2nd, 2007.
Related People
Ken Wee
Chief strategy officer
Daniel Alegre
COO & President
Bobby Kotick
CEO
Carin Huurnink
senior animator
Clement Xue
Head of Activison Blizzard Media
+2 more
Accolades
Articles featuring Activision Blizzard
Mobile Dominance
The world’s top 10 game companies made $126 billion in 2021 from software, with mobile leading the charge
Tencent came out on top with $33 billion, three quarters of which came from mobile
Drake Star Report
2022 has seen 976 deals, with Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard topping the charts
Drake Star analyses the gaming markets in its Global Gaming Industry Report
Microsoft X Activision Blizzard
The storm blows on - CMA still intent on investigating Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard
The UK regulator doubled down on plans to scrutinise the planned acquisition before approval
Allegations Against Activision Blizzard
Latest lawsuit against Activision Blizzard alleges sexual harassment, sexual battery and blackmail
Plaintiff calls Activision Blizzard "a massive video game company with a massive sexual harassment problem"
Microsoft X Activision Blizzard
Take-Two CEO positive about Microsoft’s Activision Blizzard Acquisition
Strauss Zelnick believes the deal will enrich the gaming industry
Activision Blizzard Acquisition
Strength of Mobile division key to Activision Blizzard Acquisition
Microsoft’s Phil Spencer identified the company’s strength on mobile platforms as a prime reason for the acquisition
Job News
Lulu Cheng Meservey joins Activision Blizzard executive team
Meservey will hold the positions of executive vice president of corporate affairs and chief communications officer
Activision Unions
NLRB finds that Activision Blizzard withheld raises from union campaigners
The findings come as the National Labour Relations Board investigates anti-union activity
News
UK regulators to scrutinise Activision Blizzard deal by March 2023
EU regulators are set to make their decision on November the 28th, before UK regulators make theirs next year.
News
Activision Blizzard compliance regulator Frances Townsend steps down
The compliance regulator, responsible for ensuring a healthy workplace environment, was criticised during her time at the company.
Microsoft Merger
Microsoft launch pro-merger website for Activision Blizzard bid
The merger is being challenged by competitor Sony
Microsoft Activision Deal
EU antitrust regulators set a date regarding Microsoft's acquisition of Activision
The investigation will conclude in November but if concerns are raised an extended phase could begin
Microsoft And Activision
Microsoft CEO confident about the Activision Blizzard Acquisition
“We feel very, very confident that we’ll come out.”
Unveiling A New Partnership
NetEase and Shueisha Games partner up on unVEIL the world
The RPG will launch on iOS and Android
Global Revenue
Diablo Immortal generated $97 million in August
Honor of Kings topped the revenue charts for the month
Trouble For Microsoft?
UK competition regulator calls for review of Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard
The regulator claims the deal could “harm rivals”
Microsoft Acquisition
Phil Spencer: "I'm always thinking about things that add to our capability"
Microsoft Gaming's CEO discussed the Activision Blizzard acquisition with Bloomberg
Best Of 2022
The Top 50 Mobile Game Makers of 2022
The movers and the shakers of the last 12 months
Industry Report
71% of H1 2022's total deal value came from just 5 deals
A new report breaks down the biggest deals, acquisitions, and mergers of the first half of 2022
Gender Equality In Gaming
Women in Games launches free guide to gender equality in gaming
Building a Fair Playing Field is out now
Big Business
Saudi Arabia approves Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard
The Middle Eastern country is the first to recognize the acquisition
Hot Five
Hot Five: August 15th. The mobile games industry's unmissable news, features and more
The HOTTEST stories on PocketGamer.biz in the last week
What's Next For Call Of Duty Next
Activision Blizzard to reveal new Call of Duty in "era-defining" livestream event next month
Call of Duty Next will feature Multiplayer mode on Warfare 2 and Warzone on mobile
Mobile Dominance
Mobile games more profitable than console AND PC combined, reports Activision Blizzard
Latest financial report shows Call of Duty Mobile, Diablo Immortal and Candy Crush central to $1.64
billion Q2 revenue
Major Breakthrough
Diablo Immortal surpasses $100 million in global revenue
Activision Blizzard’s free-to-play MMORPG passes another milestone
Release Reignition
Diablo Immortal launches in China after 20 million worldwide download milestone
Release follows delays of more than a month
Ready To Launch
Diablo Immortal nearing launch in China after delay
Sources claim delays were a result of social media post taken as criticism of China’s president
Twitter Top Ten
Mobile leads Twitter's most discussed games conversations in 2022
Seven of the top 10 most discussed games on the platform are mobile titles, including Genshin Impact and Ensemble Stars!
Mid-year Review
Gaming investment reached $2.6 billion in Q1 2022
The industry continues to be a top growth sector
Blazing A Trail To Success
Diablo Immortal earned $49 million in first month
The game earns over $1 million a day
Roe Vs. Wade
Mobile games developers come out in support of abortion rights
Niantic, Innersloth, Ubisoft and more speak out, while Activision Blizzard, Apple, Netflix, and others add financial support for affected employees
Activision Blizzard Board Survives
Bobby Kotck voted to be re-elected to board by Activision Blizzard shareholders
Around 91 per cent of shareholders voted in favour of extending the board’s term until 2023
Locked Into Mobile
Blizzard won’t extend Diablo Immortal’s microtransaction strategy beyond mobile
Although the firm’s mobile title made over $24 million in its launch, Blizzard has confirmed its monetisation strategy won’t extend to Diablo IV
Welcome To Hell
Diablo Immortal has made over $24 million in first two weeks
Five million downloads for the first F2P title in the Activision Blizzard franchise
News
Update: Lawsuit alleges Activision Blizzard sexual harassment led to employee suicide
Lawsuit alleges “wanted sexual harassment” in a “hostile, intimidating, offensive, oppressive, and abusive” workplace
Loot Box Lull
Activision Blizzard is not releasing Diablo Immortal in Belgium and the Netherlands
Both countries have banned loot boxes in games via gambling laws
Under A Union
Employees from Activision Blizzard's Raven Software form the first gaming union
Accepted by the National Labor Relations Board with 19 votes to 3
King Moves
King’s Diversity Space Tool to be utilised across Activision Blizzard by Q3 2022
Tool to prevent unconscious bias in game character roster will now be used in Call of Duty and Overwatch 2 teams
Where Is The Money
Call of Duty Mobile’s $1 billion consumer spend attributed to China despite highest spend in US
Activision Blizzard states 650 million downloads for mobile title now rivals console/PC player bases
News
New York City files suit against Activision Blizzard
Suit states acquisition by Microsoft severely undervalues ActiBlizz, and CEO Bobby Kotick “was unfit to negotiate a sale of the company”
Arclight Rumble
Translating the Warcraft aesthetic to mobile with Arclight Rumble
Adapting the Warcraft aesthetic to the small screen was one of the core challenges, says Activision Blizzard
Arclight Rumble
Warcraft Arclight Rumble, Blizzard’s new mobile game, will have only one in-game currency
Fairness is “one of our tentpost pillars”, says Activision Blizzard as the team moves away from multiple and premium in-game currencies.
Arclight Rumble
Activision Blizzard reveals latest mobile game, Warcraft Arclight Rumble
Studio looks back to Warcraft’s roots with its latest strategy game with tower defence elements
Do Not Activate
Activision Blizzard Q1 financial results reveal substantial decline
“Robust growth at King” unable to offset the considerable $500 million difference in revenue between Q1 2021 and 2022
One Case Closed
Activision Blizzard to settle sexual harassment lawsuit at $18 million
Will also introduce harassment prevention training and expanded performance-review system
Warzone On The Go
Activision to bring Warzone to mobile
Aiming to tap in to enormous mobile market
Eyes On Activision
Bobby Kotick stepping down from Coca-Cola to focus attention on Activision Blizzard
Following acquisition by Microsoft
New Leadership
Tjodolf Sommestad becomes new president of King
Co-founder Sebastian Knutsson stepping down from CCO role
For The Horde?
Activision Blizzard to bring Warcraft to mobile
Announcement buried in earnings report