Over the weekend, Blizzard Entertainment and Activision announced plans for a merger, which would create the world’s largest videogame company with a value of $18.8 billion-with-a-”b.” The new company will be called Activision Blizzard.
Blizzard is of course responsible for World of Warcraft, which boasts 9 million-with-an-”m” paying members. Activision publishes the Call of Duty and Guitar Hero franchises.
Irvine, California-based Blizzard will invest $2 billion in the company, while Activision will put up $1 billion. Current Blizzard owner Vivendi Games will be the largest shareholder in the new company.
Jean-Bernard Levy, Vivendi CEO:
This alliance is a major strategic step for Vivendi and is another illustration of our drive to extend our presence in the entertainment sector. By combining Vivendi’s games business with Activision, we are creating a worldwide leader in a high-growth industry.
Blizzard was founded as Silicon & Synapse in 1991. Activision, one of the industry’s oldest and most venerable players, launched in 1979.
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