It was and still is the largest acquisition in the gaming world ever. We are, of course, talking about when Microsoft bought Activision Blizzard in a deal that far exceeds the cost of the Saudi Public Investment Fund's acquisition of Electronic Arts. But despite this, many believe that Microsoft got off too cheaply with a price tag of $95 per share (a total cost of $68.7 billion), which means that all shareholders and funds with Activision Blizzard shares were underpaid.
This has prompted the huge Swedish Seventh AP Fund (a pension fund) to launch an investigation, based on the assumption that the then Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick rushed the acquisition to escape serious allegations against him and the company, which included sexual harassment. Now Game File (thanks IGN) reports that Kotick has commented on the matter, and as expected, he dismisses the allegations and instead argues that he sold at exactly the right time because the console industry is in decline:
"Today, given that console sales are at an all-time low and Call of Duty sales are off over 60% from the prior year, Plaintiff should be expressing extreme gratitude for the foresight Activision leadership demonstrated in consummating this transaction."
Game File notes that the figure is Kotick's own and cannot be verified, as neither Activision Blizzard nor Microsoft has confirmed a 60% decline in Call of Duty sales. However, a decline seems likely as a result of lower ratings and tougher competition, and console sales in the US were extremely poor at the end of 2025, with November being the worst month for game sales since 1995.
Kotick also writes, again without evidence, that The Embracer Group is behind the allegations, which will help them gain market share at Activision Blizzard's expense:
"This Delaware lawsuit was apparently aimed at helping pave the way for Embracer to increase its foothold in the California market at the expense of Activision, making it more difficult for Activision to recruit talent and expand through M&A activity of the sort that Activision relied on to grow historically."
Embracer denies this, and it remains to be seen where this will end. What do you think, was Activision Blizzard sold too cheap?