Bobby Kotick, the CEO of Activision Blizzard for the past 32 years, is officially stepping down from the company. His departure is just a part of the shuffling and reorganization happening following Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard.
Kotick sent out a note to employees and the public this week wherein he reflected on his past three decades at Activision. He was in charge of Activision through the ups and the many, many downs. These dips and valleys including the launch and massive success of the Call of Duty franchise, the launch and subsequent death of the Guitar Hero franchise, Skylanders and the birth of NFC "toys-to-life" figurines, the merger with Blizzard, the acquisition, opening, and closing of many studios, the (alleged) sexual harassment era, and finally he was obviously a part of the acquisition by Microsoft.
I cannot adequately express the pride I have in the people who continue to contribute to our success and all those who have helped throughout my 32 years leading this company.
We are now part of the world’s most admired company. That isn’t an accident.
We are now part of the world’s most admired company. That isn’t an accident.
Joining Kotick and Tippl in leaving Activision Blizzard is the outspoken and controversial COO Lulu Meservey. Meservey will be leaving the company at the end of January 2024. She was a key figure in pushing back against Activision Blizzard employees unionizing. She was also named in a labor complaint by the Communication Workers of America. She also did not shy away from sharing some choice words with the Federal Trade Commission and Sony during the rollercoaster of an ordeal that was the acquisition process by Microsoft.
Another key departure is Humam Sakhnini, the vice president of Blizzard and King. Jill Braff is actually getting a promotion, with her now becoming the head of ZeniMax and Bethesda studios. Sarah Bond also received a promotion recently. Bond is now the president of Xbox.
With any luck, this will be the final time I have to post an image of Bobby Kotick on this site.