(AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Microsoft is buying Call of Duty and Candy Crush maker Activision Blizzard Inc. in a deal worth $68.7 billion, the companies announced Tuesday, and embattled CEO Bobby Kotick will take on his role at the Video game makers remain.
| ticker | safety | Last | change | change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSFT | MICROSOFT CORP. | 303.33 | +0.68 | +0.22% |
| ATVI | ACTIVISION BLIZZARD INC. | 82.15 | -0.16 | -0.19% |
The software giant will pay $95.00 per share for the video game maker in an all-cash transaction that will make Microsoft the world’s third-largest games company by revenue behind Tencent and Sony. Activision shares are on course for their biggest rise since July 1994, when they surged 50%.
| ticker | safety | Last | change | change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SONY | SONY GROUP CORP. | 110.04 | -5.80 | -5.01% |
| TCEHY | TENCENT HOLDINGS LTD. | 57.6 | +0.05 | +0.09% |
“Gaming is the most dynamic and exciting category in entertainment today across all platforms and will play a key role in the development of Metaverse platforms,” said Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. “We’re investing heavily in best-in-class content, community and the cloud to usher in a new gaming era that puts players and developers first and makes gaming safe, inclusive and accessible to all.”
ACTIVISION COO: WE HAVE A LOT OF WORK TO DO UNDER BEHAVIOR REVIEWS
Electronic Arts, Take-Two and Zenga rose in a declining market as traders weighed the possibility of further mergers and acquisitions.
| ticker | safety | Last | change | change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SHE | ELECTRONIC ARTS INC. | 136.91 | +3.00 | +2.24% |
| TTWO | TAKE-TWO INTERACTIVE SOFTWARE INC. | 163.36 | +9.32 | +6.05% |
| ZNGA | ZYNGA INC. | 9.02 | +0.03 | +0.33% |
Kotick, who has come under pressure over allegations of running a workplace fraught with misconduct, is Activision’s largest single shareholder, owning 2.84 million shares, according to Thomson Financial.
Once the deal closes, the entity will fall under Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer.
The deal is expected to close in fiscal 2023.
