Activision and Vivendi sudden merger was announced a few hours ago but still, some explanation needs to be done and we are glad to do it.
Here are the key points in the merger:
1- Vivendi owns, Activision runs:
The merger agreement is yet to be finalized but Vivendi is supposed to end up owning 52% of the new Activision Blizzard entity. However, it is Activision's CEO who will run the combined company.
Activision boss Robert Kotick will be President and Chief Executive Officer of Activision Blizzard, and Vivendi Games' Bruce Hack will be CCO of the new company.
2- Blizzard won't be affected:
"The most important thing for our fans to understand is that we are preserving the Blizzard Entertainment brand", said Blizzard CEO Mike Morhaime in an interview. Blizzard will mentain its current structure and keep its brands. Blizzard's future games will carry the Blizzard's logo and no game ever will carry an Activision-Blizzard logo.
"The Activision Blizzard brand will not appear anywhere as a consumer-facing brand. Basically it is a corporate brand for the overall company", explained Morhaime. "If you want to buy stock in the company, the stock is called Activision Blizzard; the central shared services for the company, such as the sales and distribution force, will be Activision Blizzard. But Blizzard Entertainment will continue to be a publishing label."
3- EA is still bigger:
Although Activision claims that the new company will have the "highest operating margins of any major third-party video game publisher", EA is still bigger. EA expects $3.8 to $4.0 billion net revenue for its 2008 fiscal year, opposed to Activision's expected $3.8 billion.
