Activision Blizzard

Activision Blizzard (often abbreviated as ABK, K standing for King) is the holding company formed from the merger of Blizzard Entertainment's then-owner and , the video game producer behind Call of Duty. The merger was finalized on 9 July 2008.Activision/Vivendi Games Merger Approved: Stockholders support Activision Blizzard venture. Accessed 2010-01-23.Karune. 2008-07-10. Activision Blizzard Announcement. Battle.net StarCraft II General Discussion Forum. Accessed 2008-07-19. Vivendi became the majority shareholder of Activision BlizzardBrendan Sinclair. 2007-12-03. Activision, Vivendi merger reaps positive reactions. Gamespot. Accessed 2008-11-28. with 54% of the stock.
Almost no changes occurred at Blizzard Entertainment, and it and Activision continue to exist as separate entities under the Activision Blizzard umbrella.Activision Blizzard FAQ The holding company does not publish games under its central name and instead uses its subsidiaries to publish games, similar to how Vivendi Games operated before the merger.Businessweek. 2010-01-23. Activision Blizzard Inc details. Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. remains as Blizzard's brand.Ordinn. 2007-12-02. 0. Activision Blizzard FAQ. WoW General Discussion Forum. Accessed 2007-12-02
On 18 January 2022, announced its intent to acquire Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion.
==Split from Vivendi==
On 25 July 2013, Activision Blizzard announced that it would purchase 429 million shares from Vivendi for $5.8 billion. This purchase was financed with $1.2 billion of cash that was on hand and $4.6 billion of debt proceeds, leaving them with a $1.4 billion of net debt at the end of the deal in September 2013. An investment group that includes Bobby Kotick and Brian Kelly (who put up $100 million together), as well as Tencent and other partners, purchased 172 million shares for $2.3 billion. This group owned 24.9% of the company, and Vivendi retained ownership of 83 million shares (12%) of the company.Activision Blizzard Announces Transformative Purchase of Shares from Vivendi and New Capital StructureActivision Blizzard Purchases Vivendi's Shares By 15 January 2016, Vivendi had sold the remainder of its shares.Vivendi Sells Its Stake in Activision Blizzard
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Category:Companies