Microsoft Acquires Activision-Blizzard for $70 Billion
Microsoft pulled off arguably the biggest deal in gaming for the year, and it’s only January.
Activision-Blizzard encompasses some of the biggest names in gaming; Call of Duty, World of Warcraft, Diablo, and Overwatch all fall under this umbrella. Microsoft, the owner of Xbox, has now bolstered its seemingly lackluster lineup of exclusives compared to Sony’s Playstation.
This purchase propelled Microsoft over Nintendo to become the third-largest gaming company globally, trailing Sony and Chinese powerhouse Tencent. With that, Activision will raise a massive 400 million new users for Microsoft. Though Microsoft stocks slipped about 2%, after months of falling, Activision stocks boomed and peaked at around a 25% increase.
The reason for Activision’s slipping stock value lies within its workplace environment. It has been evident that Activision-Blizzard has had excessive sexual assault and a workplace similar to a “Frat House.”
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, in response to this, stated, “The culture of our organization is my No. 1 priority, it’s critical for Activision Blizzard to drive forward” (Associated Press).
Looking ahead, Microsoft is looking strong coming into 2022; they can lock up the Call of Duty franchise as an exclusive for their subscription service. Though the quality of Call of Duty has gone down significantly (more on that later), the addition of the Warzone game mode has allowed the franchise to remain relevant in a battle royale-dominated industry at the moment.
Though many have thrown around the word monopoly, Microsoft seems far from it. Sony and Tencent are both still ahead of Microsoft, and there is still plenty of competition in the gaming market. Indie developers have still produced insanely creative products and some of the best games this year, ie. It Takes Two.
All in all, Microsoft’s purchase of Activision-Blizzard is an excellent start to the year for them. They have plenty they can do with this purchase. Can Microsoft finally conquer their console counterpart in Sony? Probably not, but it is all to be seen.
https://apnews.com/article/microsoft-activision-blizzard-acquisition-call-of-duty-7a9e2bcc8f0b7b9049e4f93fe3e0a4dd
https://www.forbes.com/sites/annakaplan/2022/01/18/microsoft-to-buy-troubled-activision-blizzard-for-nearly-69-billion/?sh=2cba07fd17c6
