Microsoft to buy Activision Blizzard in $68.7 billion deal

Dimapur, Jan. 18 (EMN): Microsoft on Tuesday announced that it is acquiring Activision Blizzard, the publisher of popular games like Call of Duty, World of Warcraft, and Diablo, in a deal that is reportedly worth around $68.7 billion.

According to a blog post on the company’s website, this deal will make Microsoft the “third-largest” game company by revenue behind Tencent and Sony.

The company confirmed that it wants to add many of Activision’s fan-favourite franchises including Warcraft, Diablo, Overwatch and Call of Duty among others to the Xbox Game Pass collection.

This is Microsoft’s biggest push into the gaming space yet. Just a year ago, the company acquired Bethesda (ZeniMax Media) for $7.5 billion.

Amid the surge in demand for games during the pandemic and the growth of Metaverse-related content across the industry, Microsoft is pushing to get a larger piece of the pie with the impending deal.

“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,” wrote Satya Nadella, chairman and CEO, Microsoft. “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.”

Current Activision CEO Bobby Kotick will reportedly continue to serve at the helm. Microsoft expects the merger to happen sometime around 2023.

“Players everywhere love Activision Blizzard games, and we believe the creative teams have their best work in front of them,” said Phil Spencer, CEO, Microsoft Gaming. “Together we will build a future where people can play the games they want, virtually anywhere they want.”