Did Microsoft buy Activision Blizzard?

On January 18, 2022, Microsoft announced its intent to acquire Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion in cash. Under the terms of the agreement, Microsoft would own Activision, Blizzard Entertainment, and King under the Microsoft Gaming division as a sibling to Xbox Game Studios .

Will Activision Blizzard's games be available on other cloud gaming providers?

The EU said that Microsoft’s deals to make Activision Blizzard’s games available on other cloud gaming providers had fully addressed its concerns. It’s a big win for Microsoft, but the tech giant is still unable to complete its deal without the approval of the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority.

What will Activision Blizzard do after the deal closes?

Once the deal closes, the Activision Blizzard business will report to Phil Spencer, CEO, Microsoft Gaming. “Gaming is the most dynamic and exciting category in entertainment across all platforms today and will play a key role in the development of metaverse platforms,” said Satya Nadella, chairman and CEO, Microsoft.

Are Microsoft and Activision really serious about the acquisition?

If nothing else, this acquisition shows that they are deadly serious about it. Activision is a company built almost entirely around monthly active user engagement, and much like many of Microsoft's main competitors, such as Tencent, this deal is designed wholly around boosting the number of users engaged in its ecosystem.