Activision Blizzard Buys Itself Back From Vivendi

[Gahars]

Activision Blizzard is one of the largest game companies on the planet, owning some incredibly popular and successful franchises (Call of Duty, Warcraft, Skylanders, etc.). While many of its competitors have struggled, Activision Blizzard has continued to rake in billions year in and year out.

They do alright for themselves, basically.

However, Activision Blizzard was under the control of Vivendi. Lately there's been some financial drama between the two, as Vivendi made plans to take Activision Blizzard's cash reserves to pay off its own debts. Needless to say, Activision Blizzard was not thrilled about the prospect, and, well...

Activision Blizzard is now an independent company.

The company is buying approximately 429 million shares of itself back from parent company Vivendi for $5.83 billion in cash. Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick and Brian Kelly have invested a combined $100 million personally through ASAC II LP, an investment “vehicle” that that is purchasing 172 million shares of the company.

This move makes Activision Blizzard an independent company, with the majority of shares owned by the public. Vivendi will retain around 12 percent of the company.

PA Report

This, technically, makes Activision Blizzard "indie". Sorry, Mojang, you are no longer the least-indie indie out there.

Now, while Activision Blizzard has taken control of its destiny, there are some new problems the company will have to face. This move lands the company with about $1.4 billion dollars of debt, and if it messes up, there'll be no one there to catch their fall. It's a heavy risk for the company many accuse of always playing it safe.

So, what do you think? Are Kotick and Kelly acti-visionaries, or are the odds just stocked against them?

 

[chavosaur]

Inb4everyone butt blasts call of duty.
In all seriousness, I expect them to be able to bounce back relatively quickly. They're set up to make a lot of profits back during the holiday season (Call of Duty ghosts and the new Skylanders releases.)
I guess as long as that Disney Infinity thing doesn't blow Skylanders out of the water, they shouldn't have too much to worry about.

 

[EzekielRage]

I agree, they will have that cash back in no time. Say what you will about them but at least half of their titles are solid. COD is not my cup of tea but sells well, WoW practically prints money, they have almost the entire Marvel license which is also a surefire way to make money, not to mention Skylanders, StarCraft, and some dozens or more of casual titles. They will be doing fine

personally speaking, i think this was a fantastic move on their part and I hope they can continue with what they are doing. I admit of being a sucker for their Spider-Man titles...

 

[WiiUBricker]

Well, as long as WoWtards are around they should not worry too much I guess.

 

[Hells Malice]

$5.83 billion in cash.

I'd pay to see them pay that in 1s.
It's pocket change for them, I doubt they'll even notice 6billion gone. Which is really a sad thing.

 

[WiiUBricker]

I'd pay to see them pay that in 1s.
It's pocket change for them, I doubt they'll even notice 6billion gone. Which is really a sad thing.

Actually according to the above news they are now in debt for $1.4 billion.

 

[Hells Malice]

Actually according to the above news they are now in debt for $1.4 billion.

Bah pocket change. Shouldn't take long to earn it back.

 

[Rydian]

Bah pocket change. Shouldn't take long to earn it back.

But if it was pocket change why did that amount hurt them in the first place?

 

[chyyran]

If Ghosts does well, which it certainly will do, they'll be fine.

And so, Call of Duty becomes an indie game. Never thought I'd see the day.

 

[Rydian]

To be technical, it'd only be indie if they self-publish and don't have any developmental contracts.

 

[AceWarhead]

Does this make CoD players hipsters?

 

[chyyran]

To be technical, it'd only be indie if they self-publish and don't have any developmental contracts.

But, just imagine, Call of Duty on Steam Greenlight and XBLIG.

 

[EzekielRage]

Technically this changes NOTHING for their status as publishers or developers. It is just a legal thing, nothing else.

 

[Qtis]

Activision Blizzard expect $4.31 billion in revenue this year so the price is quite big for the company. Hopefully they manage to get the debt paid and we'll see some new games along the lines of Starcraft 2. Gotta love that game

 

[DSGamer64]

This move comes at an interesting time for Blizzard especially. WoW subscriptions continue to drop by almost a quarter of a million players each fiscal quarter, the current numbers are pegged around 7 million subscribers, but it's a long way from the over 10 million just a couple of years ago. That isn't to say the game is dying, but I think it's safe to say the game is on a decline as player interests wane and new MMO games hit the market with more in depth features and even free to play access with no commitment requirement financially.

 

[BORTZ]

I wonder if they did an overhaul, and instead of circa 2005 Warcraft we have now, if they did a massive update, if it would bring back players.

 

[FAST6191]

The buyback has hit a minor stumbling block, by all accounts seriously unlikely to scupper it but notable none the less.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/09/19/us-vivendi-activision-idUSBRE98H1AZ20130919

Most curiously for me though is part of the deal includes having Tencent as an investor.

 

[Arras]

Humble Activision Blizzard Bundle pls