Microsoft has confirmed it’s plans to buy Activision Blizzard – the major games company that created Call of Duty, Warcraft, Candy Crush, Tony Hawk, and more – in a deal that’s worth $68.7bn (£50.57bn).
This deal would be the biggest acquisition in Microsoft’s history, coming a year after the company bought another influential gaming company, Bethesda, for $7.5bn. The deal to acquire Activision Blizzard is expected to be finalised in 2023.
Phil Spencer, CEO at Microsoft Gaming, commented:
“As a team, we are on a mission to extend the joy and community of gaming to everyone on the planet. We all know that gaming is the most vibrant and dynamic form of entertainment worldwide and we’ve experienced the power of social connection and friendship that gaming makes possible.”
“As we pursue that mission, it is incredibly exciting to announce that Microsoft has agreed to acquire Activision Blizzard.”
“The fantastic franchises across Activision Blizzard will also accelerate our plans for Cloud Gaming, allowing more people in more places around the world to participate in the Xbox community using phones, tablets, laptops and other devices you already own. Activision Blizzard games are enjoyed on a variety of platforms and we plan to continue to support those communities moving forward.”
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Many people took to Twitter to react to the news and state their views. We asked Cameron West (Westie) for their opinion about the news that Microsoft plans to buy Activision Blizzard for almost $70 million.
Westie, who has over 825k subscribers on YouTube and over 102k followers on Twitter, told us:
“I think this is absolutely massive for the gaming world as a whole. Microsoft’s acquisition of Bethesda last year really boosted their first party offerings after being behind Sony and PlayStation for a long time, and now acquiring Activision the company adds more huge franchises to their roster. I have concerns that in the future, Microsoft may look to lock these franchises as exclusives to their platforms, but in the short term I don’t think this deal changes anything. I believe Activision Blizzard will remain an independent company until the deal completes next year, so I highly doubt this deal really starts to show its true colours until then.”
What Will Happen to Activision Blizzard’s Games?
Microsoft’s CEO, Phil Spencer, confirmed that until the deal is completed, Activision Blizzard will continue to operate separately from Microsoft Gaming. However, once the transaction is complete, Activision Blizzard will report to Microsoft. Microsoft will then offer as many Activision Blizzard games as possible via the Xbox Game Pass and PC Game Pass.
“Until this transaction closes, Activision Blizzard and Microsoft Gaming will continue to operate independently. Once the deal is complete, the Activision Blizzard business will report to me as CEO, Microsoft Gaming.”
“Upon close, we will offer as many Activision Blizzard games as we can within Xbox Game Pass and PC Game Pass, both new titles and games from Activision Blizzard’s incredible catalog. We also announced today that Game Pass now has more than 25 million subscribers. As always, we look forward to continuing to add more value and more great games to Game Pass.”
