Published , by Donovan Erskine
Published , by Donovan Erskine
Activision Blizzard has found itself making repeated headlines for all of the wrong reasons. After several allegations of harassment and mistreatment - as well as a fresh lawsuit from the state of California - all eyes have been on the biggest company in the gaming industry. All of the attention being drawn to the company has led many to reflect on the company’s past moves up until this point. With that in mind, many are wondering when exactly it became “Activision Blizzard” in the first place.
Activision acquired Blizzard over a decade ago back in 2008. Originally, Blizzard Entertainment was owned by Vivendi Games, thanks to a 1998 deal. It was in 2007 that CEO Bobby Kotick began negotiating a deal to acquire Vivendi Games. The two sides agreed on a deal, and the acquisition became official in 2008. As a part of its purchase of Vivendi Games, Activision became the owners of Blizzard Entertainment. From then on, the company was known as Activision Blizzard.
Despite Blizzard Entertainment being owned by Activision, several of its games and studios were run independently, with the teams behind World of Warcraft and Overwatch as primary examples. Blizzard CEO and founder Mike Morhaime stayed with the company up until 2018 when he stepped down from the position.
Activision has owned Blizzard Entertainment since 2008. Unfortunately, so much mistreatment and harassment has happened under that banner, as evident by the ongoing lawsuits and against the company, as well as protests from employees. To keep up with everything currently happening at Activision Blizzard, Shacknews has you covered.