Microsoft Buys Activision Blizzard for $69 Billion, Bobby Kotick Leaving After Deal Closes
Microsoft announced today that they're purchasing Activision Blizzard for about $69B USD (Nice). The acquisition is the biggest ever in Microsoft's long corporate history and shows that the company strongly believes in the gaming market. Both companies have agreed to the transaction, the deal isn't expected to close until 2023 and there's still a chance regulators may not approve the deal due to anti-trust concerns. The deal values Activision Blizzard stock at $95 a share and the company's stock jumped nearly 26% today to $82.31. The gap between the deal price ($95) and the current stock price ($82.31) reflects the risk in the deal not closing.
Once the deal closes, embattled CEO Bobby Kotick will step down from his leadership role. Activision Blizzard will report directly to Phil Spencer, Microsoft's Gaming CEO. This deal will also make Microsoft the #3 player in the gaming industry, behind just Tencent and Sony in gaming revenues.
“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,” said 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.”
“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.”
“For more than 30 years our incredibly talented teams have created some of the most successful games,” said Bobby Kotick, CEO, Activision Blizzard. “The combination of Activision Blizzard’s world-class talent and extraordinary franchises with Microsoft’s technology, distribution, access to talent, ambitious vision and shared commitment to gaming and inclusion will help ensure our continued success in an increasingly competitive industry.”
Source: Official Press Release
