Activision and Vivendi to merge

By Games Industry.biz Published 2 December, 2007

Forming Activision Blizzard.

Activision and Vivendi Games are to merge, becoming the world's largest independent videogame publisher, in a deal valued at USD 18.9 billion, GamesIndustry.biz reports.

The new company, Activision Blizzard, now boasts a portfolio bursting with some of the top-selling videogame franchises including Blizzard's World of Warcraft, Starcraft and Diablo, Vivendi's Crash Bandicoot and Spyro and Activision's Guitar Hero, Call of Duty and the Tony Hawk series.

Activision shareholders are to receive USD 27.50 a share, a 24 per cent premium over Friday's close of USD 22.15. Vivendi Games will contribute USD 1.7 billion in cash to the company and take a 52 per cent stake.

"This alliance is a major strategic step for Vivendi and is another illustration of our drive to extend our presence in the entertainment sector," commented Jean Bernard Levy, CEO of Vivendi.

"The combined strength of the existing management teams at both companies will set the stage for further profitable growth of Activision Blizzard.

"We look forward to being an active and supportive majority stockholder in a company that is poised to lead the worldwide interactive entertainment industry in the years ahead," he said.

Shares of Vivendi Games will be converted into 295.3 million new shares of Activision, which values Vivendi Games at USD 8.1 billion. Vivendi will also purchase 62.9 million newly issued shares in Activision for USD 1.7 billion in cash.

"By combining leaders in mass-market entertainment and subscription-based online games, Activision Blizzard will be the only publisher with leading market positions across all categories of the rapidly growing interactive entertainment software industry and reach the broadest possible audiences," commented Robert Kotick, CEO of Activision.

"By joining forces with Vivendi Games, we will become the immediate leader in the highly profitable online games business and gain a large footprint in the rapidly growing Asian markets, including China and Korea, while maintaining our leading operating performance across North America and Europe," he added.

Kotick will remain as chief executive of Activision Blizzard, while Vivendi Games boss Bruce Hack will become vice chairman and chief corporate officer. He will also lead the merger, expected to be compete in the first half of 2008.

Activision also said that it will now have access to Universal Music Group, the world's largest music company, "which will benefit Guitar Hero and further extend our sizeable leadership position in music-based games."

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Comments (32) Latest comment 4 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • le_Matt #1 4 years ago

    Move over EA !

  • Wyrm #2 4 years ago

    Well, as long as it benefits Guitar Hero! Does it link-up with WoW? Will there be a Bandicoot class?

  • General Coxykiller #3 4 years ago

    w00t

  • octo #4 4 years ago

    19 billion dollars?

    That values the company at over eight billion pounds?

    That sounds like an awfully large number.

  • Calgon #5 4 years ago

    They need to sort out a better name... Activision Blizzard? why not Activendi or somethin short and catchy?

  • Feralhero #6 4 years ago

    What about a new slogan - "Challenge Everything Else".

  • spliffhead #7 4 years ago

    Actizard, Blactivizzard, Ardact, Blizzion, Blactivizion.

  • [maven] #8 4 years ago

    wtf?

  • node #9 4 years ago

    Actard

  • ProtoformX #10 4 years ago

    I want a "Guitar Hero" profession in World of Warcraft.

    This is insane. OK, it makes great business sense but the numbers being thrown around here are just astronomical. This whole profit and gowth thing is something I just can't get my head round. Why did Activision have to buy Vivendi? I'm pretty sure Activision were already making enough money to get by on.

  • zoidberg #11 4 years ago

    Actually, just leave Blizzard. It will help sell more of every game they make.

  • Sasuntsi #12 4 years ago

    World of GuitarCraft: Hero Duty Call, brought to you by Universal Vizzactive!

  • FooAtari #13 4 years ago

    Holy shat that was unexpected, a sunday too.

  • DanWhitehead #14 4 years ago

    They need to sort out a better name... Activision Blizzard? why not Activendi or somethin short and catchy?

    Vivivision.

  • Chufty #15 4 years ago

    Wow... a force to be reckoned with. The name sucks though.

    $19 billion is a big number but games are big business. And on this years' evidence, deservedly so.

  • Wyrm #16 4 years ago

    Yup, should leave the Blizzard name alone. Activision means nothing to people.

  • smelly #17 4 years ago

    >Why did Activision have to buy Vivendi

    Read the story, its not a buy-out its a merge.

    Activision also had a lower share price so contributed less to the pot.. Vivendi are the biggest share holder in the group and are therefor the controlling vote. So you could say they were "bought" (but they werent)

    Edited by 2 at 02/12/07 @ 19:57

  • Kyle #18 4 years ago

    Blizzactivendizardvision!!!!!!!!11one

    Ok, I'll stop now.

  • urban #19 4 years ago

    good. for some reason i had vivendi pegged as a bust company, this solves that. would have seen this happening with some other lowly company like atari or something.

  • kangarootoo #20 4 years ago

    @ProtoformX

    "I'm pretty sure Activision were already making enough money to get by on."

    Thats the thing right there though, getting by is not enough in business. If your business isn't expanding, it is failing. No it makes no sense, but that is capitalism for you. The same capitalism that asks a farmer growing enough food for his family each year "but how will you PROGRESS without our investment?"


    @Wyrm

    Not quite sure I agree as far as the name goes. In truth a whole shed load of gamers out there haven't heard of either company. Activision has been a name in gaming for over 20 years, Blizzard are the people that make WoW. I honestly couldn't make the call on which is currently the most well known, but I'm not sure you can say the name Activision means nothing. In the mainstream, Activision is probably more well known, but what that means in game sales terms I'm not sure.

  • smelly #21 4 years ago

    >good. for some reason i had vivendi pegged as a bust company,

    scoff!

    wtf?

    Vivendi are fucking huge man! If it wasnt for everything else, they'd have WoW.

    But then you have them owning universal (ever bought a record/movie)? etc etc.

  • trav #22 4 years ago

    Activision Blizzard will more than likely get shortened down to AB. Though it doesn't have the same ring as EA.

  • projectmayhem #23 4 years ago

    At $19billion are these guys seriously expecting us to think they're independent on any level? At this stage they've more money then Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo's software divisions at an investment level (note: this fact is completely false unless someone bothers to prove it otherwise)... except with less innovation. And no, Guitar Hero isn't innovation when it's in the third iteration...

  • crazyhorse174 #24 4 years ago

    Read the story, its not a buy-out its a merge.

    Theres no such thing as a merger - thats what company's say to make people feel comfortable.

    One company always ends up better off than the other.
    Edited by 1 at 02/12/07 @ 22:59

  • Bumhug360 #25 4 years ago

    "Vivendi are fucking huge man! If it wasnt for everything else, they'd have WoW."

    Actualy thinking about it if there wasnt a merger how long would they have had WoW. Pre WoW Blizzard werent that big, since wow has been released though there has been massive growth and now out of Vivendi Games 4,000 employees 2,300 work for Blizzard. With all this growth and money being generated from WoW its not that far out to think of Blizzard ditching Vivendi and going on their own.

    Looking at the press release dont think we are going to be seeing joint branded Activision Blizzard games. Seirra, Seirra online and Vivendi Games Mobile will become part of Activision and Blizzard will remain on their own as they are now. When you buy a Blizzard game now there is no mention of Vivendi at all so doubt very much we will be seeing Activision logos popping up on WoW boxes.

  • polar #26 4 years ago

    Shit name for a company alright.

    @Bumhug360

    Eh, Vivendi own Blizzard, so it's not like Blizzard can just ditch them. Surely WoW was built largely on investment from Vivendi and not Blizzard's own cash (although they have enjoyed great success of the years). Blizzard was always entirely autonomous from Vivendi in terms of its operation and direction - big management didn't dare screw around with such a cash cow.
    Edited by 1 at 03/12/07 @ 00:25

  • smelly #27 4 years ago

    That and blizzard also contributed funds towards the merger.

  • erp #28 4 years ago

    "Also, I will become enormously rich," he added.

  • McLovin85 #29 4 years ago

    How can they name the new company Activision Blizzard? Surely having Blizzard in the name will confuse people as they will think that all their games will be made by Blizzard (are they not just a development studio? Apart from all the customer service people they have for WoW)

  • Fitzmogwai #30 4 years ago

    Excellent. They can use some of that money to remake Interstate '76 then.

  • miiiguel #31 4 years ago

    Not much of a merge, me thinks. Like a polite way of saying Activision took over.

  • smelly #32 4 years ago

    "Not much of a merge, me thinks. Like a polite way of saying Activision took over"

    *sigh*.. I'll say again for dumb people.. Vivendi are the majority share holder.. THEY "took over". Vivendi are the CONTROLLING share holders. Activision were "merged with"


    "will confuse people as they will think that all their games will be made by Blizzard "

    Which is a good thing. No different to when infogrames took over the atari name