Microsoft acquires Activision Blizzard King for US$69 billion

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Microsoft has acquired gaming publisher Activision Blizzard King to bring beloved gaming franchises such as Call of Duty, World of Warcraft and Candy Crush to Xbox.

Plans for Microsoft to acquire Activision Blizzard King were originally unveiled in January 2022 and received the approval of the British government after Microsoft agreed to sell streaming rights for Activision's games amidst competition concerns, according to Reuters. The acquisition also reportedly cost US$69 billion.

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“I’ve long admired the work of Activision, Blizzard, and King, and the impact they’ve had on gaming, entertainment, and pop culture,” said Phil Spencer, CEO of Microsoft Gaming.

“Together, we’ll create new worlds and stories and bring your favourite games to more places so more players can join in, and we’ll engage with and delight players in new, innovative ways in the places they love to play including mobile, cloud streaming and more,” he added.

In an internal email sent to Microsoft employees worldwide that was seen by MARKETING-INTERACTIVE, Spencer explained that Bobby Kotick, CEO of Activision, will remain in his role till the end of 2023 to ensure the smooth integration of both companies. Spencer also said that he will be visiting the offices of Activision, Blizzard, and King over the next few weeks.

Microsoft has also bolstered its communications team for Asia with new appointments, including Lauren Myers-Cavanagh as senior director of communications for Asia, and Simran Singh Sethi stepping up as head of communications for Southeast Asia, Hong Kong and Taiwan.

As a ten-year Microsoft veteran, Singh previously led communications and integrated storytelling for Microsoft’s commercial and cloud business in Asia. He will continue to be based in Singapore and will be reporting to Myers-Cavanagh.

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