Gaming

Here’s all the Activision Blizzard IP Microsoft just bought

Activision Blizzard is a lot more than just Call of Duty and World of Warcraft. Before the Microsoft acquisition, the Irvine-based company was a conglomerate all on its own.

ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA - NOVEMBER 01: A general view of the atmosphere at BlizzCon 2019 at the Anaheim ...
Phillip Faraone/Getty Images Entertainment/Getty Images

Activision Blizzard (AB) contains Activision and Blizzard, obviously, but it also owns mobile game company King and other game development studios like Raven Software, Infinity Ward, Sledgehammer Games, Toys for Bob, Treyarch and Vicarious Visions are all a part of AB.

The Washington Post/The Washington Post/Getty Images

Activision

Activision, a portmanteau of “active” and “television,” was founded in 1979 by a few former Atari employees and Jim Levy, a music executive who became its first CEO. Today, it’s CEO is Bobby Kotick.

From 1997 until 2008, Activision acquired seven gaming companies before merging with Vivendi Games, which owned Blizzard.

Drew Angerer/Getty Images News/Getty Images
Tap