Microsoft acquires Activision Blizzard for $69 billion

Microsoft acquires Activision Blizzard for $69 billion

Seattle, Jan. 18, 2022

Video game company Activision Blizzard, under pressure from sexism allegations and unexpectedly weak numbers, is being acquired by Microsoft – for nearly $70 billion.

The software giant, which is behind the Xbox game console, is thus securing popular games such as „Call of Duty,“ „Overwatch“ and „Candy Crush.“ In this way, the group wants to accelerate its growth in the games sector.

The current head of Activision Blizzard, Bobby Kotick, is to remain at the helm of the games company, it was reported. Kotick had come under criticism in recent months following allegations of sexual harassment and discrimination against managers at the company. The share price of the company had halved at times. Business also seemed not to be going so well recently.

Activision Blizzard, for example, shocked its shareholders at the beginning of January with an unexpectedly weak outlook for revenue and profit in the fourth quarter of 2021. The papers of the video game provider plummeted by 14 percent. A slump that Microsoft apparently used to secure a majority stake in Activision.

As a result, the group is offering $95 per share of Activision Blizzard – a 45 percent premium to Friday’s closing price of $65.39. That would value the game company at a total of $68.7 billion (60.4 billion euros).

The crash and months of turmoil at the company was triggered by a lawsuit filed by a civil rights agency, which denounced numerous abuses such as discrimination and harassment of women, as well as inequality of opportunity. As part of an investigation, 37 employees were fired, Activision Blizzard said Monday. 44 others would have received a written warning. More specific details could be given by CEO Kotick on the third of February, when the company publishes its fourth quarter figures.