Activision Blizzard Inc., situated in Santa Monica, is being acquired by Microsoft. The company’s brand properties include Tony Hawk and Call of Duty.
Microsoft Corp. wants to buy Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion, as disclosed on Tuesday. According to the corporation, behind Tencent and Sony, Microsoft will become the world’s third largest gaming company.
“Gaming is the most dynamic and exciting category in entertainment across all platforms today and will play a key role in the development of metaverse platforms,” Microsoft CEO and chairman Satya Nadella said in a press release shared Tuesday. “We’re investing deeply in world-class content, community, and the cloud to usher in a new era of gaming that puts players and creators first and makes gaming safe, inclusive and accessible to all.”
Following the filing of a sexual harassment and discrimination complaint in California, J. Allen Brack, the president of Activision’s Blizzard Entertainment, announced his departure in August.
Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick—who still serves in that capacity—thanked individuals who had come forward in a message to staff at the time, saying the business will take “rapid action to be the compassionate, caring company you came to work for and to maintain a safe environment.”
Last year, hundreds of Activision Blizzard employees organized a virtual strike that encompassed different studios and teams in protest of layoffs.
Following the Microsoft deal’s closing, Activision Blizzard will begin reporting to Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer, who said Tuesday that the company will offer “as many Activision Blizzard games as we can” via Xbox Game Pass and PC Game Pass upon said closing.
“We are incredibly excited to have the chance to work with the amazing, talented, dedicated people across Activision Publishing, Blizzard Entertainment, Beenox, Demonware, Digital Legends, High Moon Studios, Infinity Ward, King, Major League Gaming, Radical Entertainment, Raven Software, Sledgehammer Games, Toys for Bob, Treyarch and every team across Activision Blizzard,” Spencer said.