Microsoft agrees $250m settlement in Activision Blizzard deal lawsuit

Microsoft has agreed to a $250 million settlement over a class action lawsuit brought by Swedish pension fund Sjunde AP-Fonden (AP7) over the $68.7 billion Activision Blizzard sale.

The case was first brought in 2022 with claims that then Activision CEO Bobby Kotick had rushed sale to Microsoft and that it was underpriced.

As reported by Game File, a preliminary settlement filed to Delaware’s Court of Chancery, if approved, will see Activision shareholders who owned stock between January 2022 through to October 2023 eligible to receive further payment.

The document noted that the settlement amount represents a total of $250m in cash, including not only money to resolve the allegations in the lawsuit, but also all attorneys’ fees, administrative costs and any other costs, expenses or fees associated with the resolution of the case.

Terms of the deal include the parties denying “any and all allegations of fault, liability, wrongdoing or damages whatsoever alleged in the Action”. “The Parties make no admission of liability or any form of wrongdoing whatsoever," it added.

Claims withdrawn

“Microsoft is entering into this Stipulation solely to avoid the burden, expense and distraction of continued litigation,” read a statement in the court filing. 

“Microsoft does not substantiate any allegations that there has been systemic or widespread workplace misconduct at Activision; that Activision senior executives ignored, condoned, or tolerated a culture of systemic harassment, retaliation, or discrimination; or that Activision’s Board of Directors, including chief executive officer, Kotick, acted improperly with regard to the handling of any instances of workplace misconduct.”

It added: “Plaintiff acknowledges that its original claims were based in part on media reporting and characterisations of allegations made by the California Rights Department, which the CRD itself admitted in a court-approved consent decree have never been ‘substantiated’ by any ‘court or independent investigation’ and now have been expressly withdrawn.

“Plaintiff acknowledges that the CRD fully withdrew all of its claims of widespread sexual harassment at Activision and in a court approved consent decree the CRD clearly stated ‘no court or any independent investigation has substantiated any allegations there there has been systemic or widespread sexual harassment at Activision; that Activision senior executives ignored, condoned, or tolerated a culture of systemic harassment, retaliation, or discrimination; or that Activision’s board of directors, including its CEO, Robert Kotick, acted improperly with regard to the handling of any instances of workplace misconduct.'”