Microsoft’s biggest acquisition ever, plus the biggest gaming industry deal in history, was marked on Tuesday, the 18th of January, when Microsoft (NASDAQ:) made almost a $70 billion all-cash deal and acquired gaming company Activision Blizzard (NASDAQ:). Microsoft now ranks third in terms of gaming companies worldwide.

Activision Blizzard is known for producing the world’s most played video games such as Call of Duty, Crash Bandicoot, Tony Hawk’s, World of Warcraft, Diablo, Candy Crush Saga, and many more.

Microsoft News Center reports that Microsoft is looking to build blocks to the metaverse by completing the deal and to expand its gaming business on mobile, desktop, console and cloud.

“Gaming is the most dynamic and exciting category in entertainment across all platforms today and will play a key role in the development of metaverse platforms,” said Satya Nadella, Microsoft’s CEO. “We’re investing deeply in world-class content, community and the cloud to usher in a new era of gaming that puts players and creators first and makes gaming safe, inclusive and accessible to all.”
“Players everywhere love Activision Blizzard games, and we believe the creative teams have their best work in front of them. Together we will build a future where people can play the games they want, virtually anywhere they want,”
Phil Spencer is the Microsoft Gaming CEO.

The Flipside

• Activision has faced many complaints regarding its work environment.
• Microsoft reports that today, three billion people are playing video games. This number will rise to 4.5 billion in 2030.