EA responds to Activision/Vivendi merge

  • Posted December 4th, 2007 at 11:50 EDT by
  • 3,804 views
  • 31 Comments

By now most of our readers should be aware of the recent merging of industry giants Activision and Vivendi. This acquisition has created the Activision Blizzard brand, which will more than likely start an industry trend.

Perhaps more crucially, the move has now cemented Activision Blizzard as the world’s largest videogame publisher, surpassing Electronic Arts, which has held the crown for some time now.

Electronic Arts views this as a solemn period that they must go through, and ultimately one that will prove that they are quality company, or show they lack the tools essential to being an industry top dog.

Speaking on the matter, an EA representative commented, "...We're always at our best when we have a clearly defined competitor, [The Activision/Vivendi merger] doesn't change our strategy. Our CEO John Riccitiello has been encouraging senior managers to think of all other publishers as one large competitor--he's been encouraging them to think like challengers."

As it stands now, Activision Blizzard is expected to bring in USD 3.8 billion in revenue for the 2007 calendar year while conversely, EA is expecting USD 3.35 - 3.65 billion for their fiscal year ending March 31, 2008. Additionally, Activision Blizzard currently holds control over the world’s largest MMO, World of Warcraft, while EA made the move to buy out Pandemic/Bioware, which is said to be working on a Star Wars MMO.

The rep closes things out by offering some industry support to what will be their biggest competition for the next few years, "...We wish them good luck and look forward to the competition. We believe that EA still has the industry's strongest portfolio of game franchises."

Source: CVG

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What are your thoughts?

  1. Muzikguy | Muzikguy

    • 11:54am GMT - December 4th, 2007

    HA! EA is at their best when they have a clearly defined competitor? I didn't even know they were competing. There's no market for crappy games.

  2. vfitz22 | vfitz66

    • 11:55am GMT - December 4th, 2007

    Don't really matter as long as they bring out decent games

  3. bluecapone

    • 11:59am GMT - December 4th, 2007

    lets hope this will force EA to make better games

  4. Staticneuron | Staticneuron

    • 12:16pm GMT - December 4th, 2007

    You people seem to have forgotten ea purchased bioware and pandemic. They also have studios like dice and criterion under their thumbs. EA has some shady practices but lets get real about their devs. They do have some really good devs in their fold.

    The activision and vivendi merger still has me excited. I know actvision recently purchased bizzare creations and the new ghostbusters is comming out of sierra which is a vivendi company.

     

    Crazy times ahead.

  5. Soraz | Sodraz

    • 12:16pm GMT - December 4th, 2007

    Activision Blizzard does NOT control World of Warcraft, Blizzard Entertainment does, do not mix them up, if anything Blizzard Entertainment controls Activision Blizzard, NOT the other way around.

  6. D3v1lwqer23 | Sodraz

    • 12:18pm GMT - December 4th, 2007

    Blizzard is, and always was a division of Activision.  Sorry...

  7. Soraz | Sodraz

    • 12:21pm GMT - December 4th, 2007

    link d3v1l, don't have one??

  8. RichMacca

    • 12:24pm GMT - December 4th, 2007

    For all the stick they get, some EA games are quality, having said that, i dont care whos top dog, just that i can get the games that i want!

  9. reccodog | reccodog

    • 12:54pm GMT - December 4th, 2007

    I really hope EA gets it together and starts to produce better games for the Playstation 3. Most of there PS3 games SUCK. Activsion really puts good games out there for all consoles.

  10. NY_Young1 | NY_Young1

    • 1:38pm GMT - December 4th, 2007

    EA is going to get owned  because Activison is not really known to delay game launches in which EA does for almost every single game. Finally, EA is no longer "King".........

  11. Mecha_Daddy | mecha_daddy

    • 1:45pm GMT - December 4th, 2007

    I'd love to see some real competition now.  EA used to produce some really good games.  Strong competition can drive them back to their old form.

  12. TofuOnoPhD | bodoe

    • 2:02pm GMT - December 4th, 2007

    Hey D3v1l, are you smoking crack, since when has Activision owned Blizzard.....since....NEVER!  And people are clearly misunderstanding everything that has happened.  Vivendi has owned Blizzard for years now.....and Vivendi bought 52% of Activisons publicly owned stock giving them control of the company.  Activision Blizzard is just a name, it in no way shape or form gives anybody, but Vivendi, control of either activision, or blizzard, or any combination of the two.  Vivendi pretty much lets Blizzard do whatever they want because of how lucrative they are.

  13. Silentmom

    • 2:24pm GMT - December 4th, 2007

    finally something to make ea actually start to make better quality games for the ps3...i hate all their glitches and frame rates issues...pisses me off

  14. humanputting

    • 3:21pm GMT - December 4th, 2007

    blizzard by far is the best pc dev out there all their games show how much passion they put into them.  starcraft being a shining example, its been almost 10 years tens of thousands still playing and eagerly awaiting for the next bomb to drop: starcraft 2, with regular updates still coming its no wonder why this game still rox.

  15. tom ass

    • 3:39pm GMT - December 4th, 2007

    i hoping for diablo 3 after starcraft 2. blizzard truly does make top of the line high quality games. i've gotten hundreds of hours of fun from their games.

  16. Snakeboy | AswadsWorld

    • 3:50pm GMT - December 4th, 2007

    EA should be afriad and i got no problem with u my ign ign ha poo poo bums should be clean before use toilet water the simpsons are the jam at hillhead shot the death of deja viwere sjf gxjhgjschdgjdsfdcdc

  17. DeadOnArrival06 | DeadOnArrival06

    • 4:30pm GMT - December 4th, 2007

    Snake Boy, you never make any sense..

  18. Lithgow

    • 5:43pm GMT - December 4th, 2007

    EA can suck Bill Gates dck...o wait, they already do

  19. bnolan56 | snowy311

    • 6:14pm GMT - December 4th, 2007

    Actually Blizzard was a subsidary of Vivendi, sorry to both of you. and i could careless both companies suck. Save for a couple gams, monolith productions isnt even associated with Vivendi or Activision any more (they made fear) and it is such the trend to leave Vivendi for EA now. I honestly like EA more than vivendi and activision

  20. Alpha2

    • 7:38pm GMT - December 4th, 2007

    well atleast it forces EA to actually TRY to be a decent company. See this is how competition is supposed to work. not the way M$ would have you think: "there can be only one... US"

  21. gingo | gingo

    • 7:49pm GMT - December 4th, 2007

    psn id: gingo.... EA cannot do their best at anything unless its publishing a game that was not made by them

  22. MAN310 | MAN310

    • 8:50pm GMT - December 4th, 2007

    Thats wack!!!!! But if they keep bringing out hot games I guess it will be fine.

  23. NAMEK | NAMEK

    • 9:27pm GMT - December 4th, 2007

    Competition is always good, hope EA starts actually making good games.

  24. sleepyzombie

    • 10:24pm GMT - December 4th, 2007

    EA needs the competition so that they may actually be able to come up with an original game idea.

  25. Deldwen | Deldwen1

    • 10:34pm GMT - December 4th, 2007

    i didnt no activison was so great... thought they were just medium in power... i dont rember any truly grwat games by them.... hmmmm REFRESH MY MEMMORY lol

  26. Uncool | Admodistrator

    • 11:24pm GMT - December 4th, 2007

    Pfft, finally someone other then EA is going to being dropping some bomb franchises and make EA work for monopolizing the industry. XD

  27. soket

    • 12:07am GMT - December 5th, 2007

    muzikman do you even pay attention? EA just released crysis and all you can do is whine and complain? go play your wow and let the grown ups talk.

  28. cashville

    • 1:02am GMT - December 5th, 2007

    KNOW ALL WE  need from acitivation  is sport games.  come one activation you can do it ....buy the FIFA LICENSE and make it the best .......i wonder what call of duty 5 will be about !!!! hmmmmmmmmmmm

  29. PS3-The Ultimate Machine

    • 3:35am GMT - December 5th, 2007

    Hopefully,this means EA working harder to actually make quality games(don't laugh) to take down the top dog.

  30. frank_magnet | Frank_Magnt

    • 4:05am GMT - December 5th, 2007

    PSU can we get a spell checker for these idiots?

  31. Xdeth | Xdeth

    • 11:24am GMT - December 5th, 2007

    @frank_magnet
    A simple proof read of what they wrote would fix most of their problems.

    I really hope this pushes EA to make better games. Only time will tell.

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