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Title    Microsoft Set to Purchase Activision Blizzard in $68.7 Billion Deal
Date    Wednesday January 19 2022, @02:46AM
Author    janrinok
Topic   
from the dept.
https://soylentnews.org/article.pl?sid=22/01/18/1550250

Microsoft Set to Purchase Activision Blizzard in $68.7 Billion Deal

upstart writes:

Microsoft set to purchase Activision Blizzard in $68.7 billion deal:

Microsoft this morning announced plans to purchase gaming mega-publisher Activision Blizzard for a record-setting $68.7 billion. The move, when finalized, would bring franchises like Call of Duty, Overwatch, Diablo, World of Warcraft, Starcraft, and many more under the umbrella of the Xbox maker.

Today's announcement follows on Microsoft's $7.8 billion acquisition of Bethesda, announced just 15 months ago. After some initial confusion about what that meant for Bethesda's multiplatform titles, it has since become clear that most of Bethesda's biggest franchises, such as Elder Scrolls, will not be appearing on competing consoles such as the PlayStation 5.

In an encouraging sign for fans of Activision Blizzard's multiplatform games, Microsoft said in its announcement that "Activision Blizzard games are enjoyed on a variety of platforms and we plan to continue to support those communities moving forward." But Microsoft and Bethesda executives made similar positive noises about multiplatform titles before the deal was closed, only to shift towards Bethesda exclusivity after the deal was finalized.

Microsoft notes in its announcement that Activision Blizzard games would become a part of its Game Pass program, which currently enjoys 25 million subscribers. "With Activision Blizzard's nearly 400 million monthly active players in 190 countries and three billion-dollar franchises, this acquisition will make Game Pass one of the most compelling and diverse lineups of gaming content in the industry," the company said. "Upon close, Microsoft will have 30 internal game development studios, along with additional publishing and esports production capabilities."

Microsoft Plans to Buy Activision Blizzard for Nearly $70bn

upstart writes:

Microsoft plans to buy Activision Blizzard for nearly $70bn:

This deal is the biggest in gaming history and comes a year after Microsoft bought another influential gaming company Bethesda for $7.5bn.

Satya Nadella, chairman and CEO of Microsoft said: "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."

Activision Blizzard has studios around the word with nearly 10,000 employees.

It has been dealing with accusations of a toxic work-place culture and claims of sexual harassment in recent months.

And the announcement causes looorg to ask:

MS set to buy the competition, Activision-Blizzard for $68.7 billion in cash. I guess this is what corporations with too much cash on hand do, go on a shopping spree.

I wonder if this means World of Warcraft will now come to the Xbox and if the sub fee will be covered by the Xbox Game Pass...


Original Submission #1Original Submission #2Original Submission #3

Links

  1. "upstart" - https://soylentnews.org/~upstart/
  2. "Microsoft set to purchase Activision Blizzard in $68.7 billion deal" - https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2022/01/microsoft-set-to-purchase-activision-blizzard-in-68-7-billion-deal/
  3. "announced plans" - https://news.xbox.com/en-us/2022/01/18/welcoming-activision-blizzard-to-microsoft-gaming/
  4. "announced just 15 months ago" - https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2020/09/microsoft-purchases-bethesda-softworks-in-industry-changing-acquisition/
  5. "some initial confusion" - https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2020/09/bethesdas-multiplatform-future-is-minecraft-a-good-sign-for-skyrim/
  6. "such as Elder Scrolls" - https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2021/11/sorry-playstation-owners-elder-scrolls-vi-will-be-an-xbox-pc-exclusive/
  7. "similar " - https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2020/11/bethesda-games-will-likely-be-first-or-better-not-only-on-xbox/
  8. "positive noises" - https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2020/10/bethesda-exec-says-an-xbox-exclusive-elder-scrolls-is-hard-to-imagine/
  9. "shift towards Bethesda exclusivity" - https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2021/03/microsoft-confirms-some-new-bethesda-titles-will-be-exclusive-to-xbox-pc/
  10. "Microsoft plans to buy Activision Blizzard for nearly $70bn" - https://www.bbc.com/news/newsbeat-60042409
  11. "Bethesda for $7.5bn." - https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/54233235
  12. "claims of sexual harassment in recent months." - https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-58982225
  13. "looorg" - https://soylentnews.org/~looorg/
  14. "Xbox Game Pass" - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xbox_Game_Pass
  15. "Original Submission #1" - https://soylentnews.org/submit.pl?op=viewsub&subid=53392
  16. "Original Submission #2" - https://soylentnews.org/submit.pl?op=viewsub&subid=53395
  17. "Original Submission #3" - https://soylentnews.org/submit.pl?op=viewsub&subid=53391

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