Microsoft announced a deal to buy video-game player Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion. If it goes through, it would be Microsoft’s biggest-ever acquisition — and by far the biggest deal ever in the video game biz.
Activision Blizzard’s lineup of games includes “Call of Duty,” “Candy Crush,” “Warcraft,” “Diablo,” “Overwatch” and “Hearthstone.” According to Microsoft, the deal will accelerate the growth its gaming business across mobile, PC, console, and cloud and will provide building blocks for the metaverse.
The deal news, announced Tuesday, comes as Activision Blizzard has been attempting to recover from a scandal in which the company was accused of allowing a “pervasive frat boy workplace culture” to thrive that allegedly resulted in women employees being continuously subjected to sexual harassment and being paid less than men. Activision Blizzard has fired or “pushed out” more than three dozen employees for misconduct since last July, the Wall Street Journal reported.
More to come.
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