Microsoft has revealed that it has paid about $70 billion for Activision Blizzard, the company behind games such as Call of Duty, Warcraft, Candy Crush, Tony Hawk, Diablo, and Over watch. The merger is still in the works, according to the official press release, and the companies will continue to function separately until it is completed.
The Activision Blizzard business would report to Phil Spencer, the CEO of Microsoft Gaming, if the transaction is completed. Spencer went on to say that Microsoft would include as many Activision Blizzard items as possible in the Xbox and PC Games Pass, both new and old.
This would imply that not only would we see more Activision-Blizzard games on Games Pass, but Microsoft could also estimate proper Activision-Blizzard games Xbox/PC exclusive, removing a significant portion of the publisher’s games from PlayStation fans’ hands.
According to Spencer, “Activision Blizzard games are played on a variety of platforms, and we aim to continue to support those communities moving forward.” As per Bloomberg’s Dina Bass, the sources indicate that it might be worth $68.7 billion. To put this in perspective, Disney paid $4.05 billion for Lucasfilms (the business behind the Star Wars series).
What Spencer said
“As a company, Microsoft is committed to our mission for inclusiveness in every part of gaming, among both employees and players,” Spencer said of the work culture that he hopes to bring to Activision Blizzard under its new leadership. Individual studio cultures are extremely important to us.
We also believe that creative achievement and autonomy are inextricably linked to treating each individual with decency and respect. “We hold all teams, and all leaders, to this promise,” he continued. We’re excited to bring our proactive inclusion culture to all of Activision Blizzard’s fantastic teams.”
