Microsoft buys Activision Blizzard with an eye on the metaverse

Tech giant Microsoft has announced the acquisition of video game firm Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion. An operation that places the American company in the third largest video game company by revenue, behind the Chinese Tencent and the Japanese Sony. And in a good position to advance the future of the metaverse.

After the purchase rumors spread by The Wall Street Journal, Microsoft has confirmed in a statement the purchase operation in which it is immersed with Activision Blizzard, owner of titles as popular as Call of Duty, World of Warcraft Y Candy Crush.

The acquisition, valued at $68.7 billion, will be the highest made by Microsoft to date – the purchase in 2016 of Linkedin was made for 26,000 million-, and the highest in the sector – it exceeds the one announced just two weeks ago between Take-Two and Zynga for 12,700 million-.

Xbox Game Pass gana tamaño

For the firm chaired by Satya Nadella, the purchase of Activision Blizzard is a reinforcement of its service strategy versus hardware manufacturing, since the new video games that Microsoft will have access to will become part of its Xbox Game Pass catalog , your video game subscription service to play on Xbox consoles and Microsoft computers.

This service, which already has 25 million subscribers, will add about 400 million users from Activision Blizzard titles, which are home to a wide variety of gamers. “After closing, we will offer all the Activision Blizzard video games that we can within Xbox Game Pass and PC Game Pass, both new titles and others from their incredible catalog”, he explained. Phil Spencer, head of the video game division of Microsoft.

A step into the metaverse

Another relevant asset of the video game company is the large number of studios that it has: those belonging to Activision, those from Blizzard and King, as well as Infinity Ward or the Spanish Digital Legends. A total of 10,000 new employees will join the ranks of Microsoft.

Precisely, this greater access to video game production and development will help the company to transition to the metaverse. A future also envisioned by other technology companies such as Facebook or Apple.

“Today the video game is the most dynamic and exciting category in entertainment across all platforms and will play a key role in the development of platforms in the metaverse”, confirmed in the statement its president, Satya Nadella.

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