Earlier on Monday, a civil lawsuit filed by the US Justice Department against Activision Blizzard claimed that the publisher had committed anti-trust violations and unlawfully “suppressed esports players’ wages” in its Overwatch and Call Of Duty professional leagues.
On top of other lawsuits the company is already dealing with, it shouldn’t be surprising that this looks to have been a fight it didn’t want, and has reportedly already agreed to a settlement with the USJD.
What’s more is that part of the settlement includes Activision Blizzard’s agreement that it won’t put future limits on salaries.
The settlement is still yet to be final, requiring a judges approval, though if Activision Blizzard’s rush to a settlement is any indication of how much it wants to be dealing with this, its likely this case will be settled and closed soon.
What got Activision Blizzard in hot water in the first place was its Competitive Balance Tax, a tax that it still backs up.
“We have always believed, and still believe, that the Competitive Balance Tax was lawful, and it did not have an adverse impact on player salaries.”
The tax has already been dropped from the leagues rules, as both the Overwatch and Call Of Duty league removed it in 2021.
In a statement provided to VGC, Activision Blizzard says that it remains “committed to a player ecosystem with fair pay and healthcare and continue to have the least restrictive player mobility compensation system across all of the major sports leagues.”