Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick addressed employees at an all-hands meeting Thursday morning to discuss the company’s recent acquisition by Microsoft for nearly $69 billion. In a video conference call titled “Fireside Chat,” Kotick discussed the future of the company during the transition and answered a number of employee questions read by Chief People Officer Julie Hodges, and he noted that he plans to stay in his role as CEO until the deal closes and would do so longer if needed to ensure a smooth transition.
On Tuesday, the tech and gaming industries woke up to shocking news that Microsoft would buy embattled gaming company Activision Blizzard, in one of the largest acquisitions in history. The acquisition is expected to be completed by June 2023, pending regulatory approval. Over the past six months, Activision Blizzard has been besieged by lawsuits from a California state agency, shareholders and employees who allege a “frat boy” corporate culture leading to sexual harassment and gender-based discrimination.
Kotick, who has had shareholders and employees alike call for his resignation, said during Thursday’s video call that “the transition is going to be smooth because [Microsoft is] committed to trying to retain as many of our people as possible.”
Following the video call, which did not include a live chat and did not show other participants, several Activision Blizzard employees told The Washington Post the comment made them suspicious of upcoming layoffs. The employees spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of retribution.
Activision Blizzard did not immediately return a request for comment.
Sneaking in a joke assuring employees they would not be switching over to conferencing platform Microsoft Teams, Hodges and Kotick said they were reading through questions that came in via email about job security, compensation changes and Microsoft’s strategy around games.
Kotick said the deal came about because Microsoft deeply admired Activision Blizzard and wanted to get in on investing in the metaverse. He mused on the idea of the company helping to create another “Guitar Hero.”
Hodges asked Kotick if he would stay on as CEO after the deal closes. Kotick responded that the transaction’s completion would follow a lengthy process.
“This is a company that I’ve now been here for 31 years, and there is nothing more important to me, other than my children, than this company,” Kotick said. “I can tell you that my commitment to the company is [to] remain in my role. Once the deal closes, what I’ve committed to Microsoft is I will stay as long as is necessary to ensure that we have a great integration and a great transition.”
The chat lasted for 16 minutes, despite being billed to employees as a half-hour conversation. Kotick was seven minutes late and wrapped up the conversation early, saying he believed completing the deal with Microsoft would be a great journey.
A Blizzard employee who spoke on the condition of anonymity said they are optimistic about the deal with Microsoft but remain wary of Kotick.
“All the fear and anger felt is still tied up in Bobby Kotick and what harm he will inflict until the torch is passed to Microsoft,” the Blizzard employee said. “He likened Activision to be as important as his children, and I feel like he will not let go of it. With no mention of the strike, the lawsuit or any of the continuing issues, there may as well have not been a Q&A at all. We could’ve read a press release and slept an extra 15 minutes.”
Phil Spencer, head of Xbox and now CEO of Microsoft Gaming, told The Post in an interview this week that before announcing the acquisition, Xbox worked with the Activision team and looked at how culture problems were being addressed.
“We had to look at that forward plan and ensure we had a kind of confidence in that,” he said.
Gene Park contributed to this report.
