Microsoft officially acquires Call of Duty maker Activision Blizzard, CEO Bobby Kotick set to leave next year

Microsoft, the parent company of Xbox, has officially closed its $70 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard, the developer and publisher behind video game franchises like Diablo, Overwatch, Candy Crush, and Call of Duty. In January 2022, the software giant Microsoft announced its intention to acquire the publisher, for a $68.7 billion all-cash deal, set to be the biggest acquisition in the video game industry.

Previously, Microsoft acquired the Bethesda Game Studios for $7.5 billion. Since 2018, Xbox has been rapidly expanding its first-party roster; both major acquisitions were part of it. However, unlike Bethesda's acquisition, this acquisition wasn't all smooth for Xbox's parent company.

The deal not only had to be restructured several times, including selling cloud streaming rights to the French publisher Ubisoft, but the companies also had to fight extended legal battles against the Federal Trade Commission, who revealed information about the industry and the companies involved.

The deal was also opposed by several competitors like Nvidia (who later supported it following a GeForce Now deal), Google, and Sony, being the most vocal opposition.

UK's CMA was the final hurdle after the judge ruled in Microsoft's favor against FTC. Following the cloud deal with Ubisoft, that addressed CMA's concern, the acquisition was officially approved in the UK market earlier today. This was followed by Microsoft officially closing the acquisition and Activision Blizzard King becoming a part of Xbox.

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Activision CEO Bobby Kotick is set to leave the company after more than three decades following Microsoft's acquisition

Following the official acquisition, Activision CEO Bobby Kotick sent an email to the employees, congratulating them on the historic acquisition, and he also shared the news that he will stay on as CEO until the end of 2023 and leave the company on January 1, 2024. He said in the email.

I have long said that I am fully committed to helping with the transition. Phil has asked me to stay on as CEO of ABK, reporting to him, and we have agreed that I will do that through the end of 2023. We both look forward to working together on a smooth integration for our teams and players.

Kotick became CEO in 1991 after buying a stake. He pioneered the Vivendi Games, forming Activision-Blizzard. With Kotick leaving and the studios officially under Xbox's leadership, it certainly is new territory for the future of Activision-Blizzard.