Activision Blizzard, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATVI) announced that its wholly owned subsidiary, ABS Partners C.V., completed the acquisition of King Digital Entertainment plc. As part of this deal, ABS Partners acquired King’s outstanding shares for $18 each, making the entire deal worth $5.9 billion.
Management Call
The senior management team of Activision Blizzard was delighted to share this update and hoped that it would turn out to be one of the best decisions for Activision in the future. According to Bobby Kotick, CEO, Activision Blizzard, this acquisition has helped the company to reach a total of over 500 million users worldwide, more than any other game developer in the world. Going forward, Activision Blizzard will continue to make efforts to ensure that game lovers can enjoy their favorite games like World of Warcraft, Candy Crush, Call of Duty, etc. on consoles, devices and personal computers.
As a result of this deal, all the key employees at King Digital Entertainment, including Sebastian, Riccardo, Stephane, etc. will join Activision Blizzard and lend their support for developing popular games in the coming months.
According to Riccardo Zacconi, CEO, King Digital Entertainment, this deal will prove to be a game-changer for both the companies. The entire team of King Digital Entertainment is delighted to be a part of Activision Blizzard. It’s been 13 years since King Digital came into existence, and Zacconi thanked everyone who played a role in company’s success over these years. Under the guidance of Activision’s experienced staff and world-class technologies, King will continue to develop games that can engage users in the best way possible.
Although Activision has acquired all the shares of King Digital Entertainment, it will continue to operate as an independent unit led by CEO Riccardo Zacconi, COO Stephane Kurgan, and CCO Sebastian Knutsson.
Further details about game development by King and Activision will be shared with all the employees from time to time.
